Meddling In Fate
by Kushinada Uzumaki
Summary: AU; Fem!Harry: After dying of old age, Death decides his mistress' next great adventure should be special. So Violet Potter is reborn as Uzumaki Sachi, and her story writes itself anew.
1. Prologue: Death's Mistress

**AN: So a new year, and new stories and older stories to complete. **

**I have three I am wishing to introduce, this is one of them, which simply hit me when I happened to see an episode with Shisui. I realized I wanted to do something that I hadn't seen before, at least not completely. As always more information is on my website, linked on my profile. **

**For those awaiting chapters for my other stories, the stories listed as In-Progress are the ones I focus on, the ones marked with Hiatus are on hold until I can clear up more time and or finish a few of my stories. **

**Ones marked as Work-in-Progress such as Flower of the Forest means it is being written but also needs work as far as the story plot and idea goes – in other words it'll be uploaded in the future, but probably not for a while. I don't want to upload any more new stories after this one for a while. **

**8/2/16: A poll for Naruto's pairing in the story is up on my profile. I won't have it up for more than two weeks so if you haven't already voted in the poll please go do that. **

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Meddling In Fate. **

**Chapter 1: Prologue: Death's Mistress. **

**October 31st, 2130:**

It was only fitting she faded away into her next great adventure the day that she'd first cheated death. The day her parents had died by the hands of history's darkest wizard. Not since Voldemort, born Tom Marvolo Riddle, had the Magical World hit such a low. Dark wizards had come and gone since Voldemort, but none could boast the magical power of Voldemort or even Grindelwald.

They were easily taken care of.

For a long time Violet Potter brought these sort of people to stand trial and be sentenced to Azkaban. She'd spent over sixty years as an Auror with a few odd years spent in the Department of Mysteries, but the work the Unspeakables did wasn't for her in the long run.

She couldn't keep the patience for the job so she went back to what she was good at, fighting dark wizards and witches. After Violet retired she was offered the job of replacing Minerva McGonagall, who'd passed of age well into her hundreds. It only took her so many hours to agree, Hogwarts was after all her first home and always would be.

Grimmauld Place was a dreary place compared to Hogwarts, and taking the position of Headmistress of Hogwarts seemed like going home after a long day's work. It was fulfilling. There hadn't been many times in her life she'd felt the same. She'd lived for one hundred and fifty years. The first eighteen of which couldn't be called living, it was only surviving, but she'd done just that – she'd survived.

She'd defeated the darkest wizard since Salazar Slytherin, being hailed as the Woman-Who-Conquered (much to her disdain) and gifted the Order of Merlin, First Class. Though she was somewhat annoyed, she hadn't wanted fame out of what she'd done. She'd done so because she was the only one who could, or so the prophecy said. Till the day she died, Violet wasn't sure she completely believed in the prophecy. She was someone who believed one wrote their own fate after all.

After the defeat of Voldemort many believed she'd settle down. Find someone to love and would love her, get married, and continue the Potter line (even if the name went extinct). It wasn't like Violet hadn't tried to find love. She'd dated plenty throughout her late teens and twenties.

Then in her early thirties Violet realized love just wasn't in the cards for her. She'd tried, but no one really saw her for her, they saw her for her money, fame, and her accomplishments. Even the one serious boyfriend she had, turned fiancée, didn't work out in the end because he was a Muggle. It wasn't so much the fact he lacked magic, she didn't care about that, but he was a scientist and just couldn't handle the truth of magic.

They ended their relationship before the wedding, and Violet didn't regret it. She knew from the moment she'd told him and he'd reacted badly that marrying him would have been the mistake. Violet Potter remained single, and never had children of her own. She did, however, raise her godson – Teddy Remus Lupin.

His grandmother Andromeda died from rogue Death Eaters when he was nearly one, and after that Violet fought for custody. Narcissa Malfoy would have gotten him otherwise and despite the woman saving her life in the Battle of Hogwarts, she didn't want Teddy exposed to the Malfoy ideals.

Teddy was like a son to her, the child she'd never been blessed with, and in kind Teddy treated her like his mother. He was officially adopted before he was a year old, made heir to his godmother's fortune, the Peverell, Black, and Potter families.

Eventually Teddy grew up and married Victoire Weasley. The Weasley's were a family Violet was still very close with considering her two best friends were Hermione and Ronald Weasley. They'd named her the godmother of their daughter Rose Weasley – who name wasn't just inspired by Shakespeare, but by Violet's own family tradition of naming females after flowers.

Teddy and Victoire graduated Hogwarts a year apart, and soon after Victoire's seventh year they married. They had children, who had children, who had children, and further down the line. Despite not having any biological children, Violet was never really alone or lonely.

Teddy Lupin, now an old man of one-hundred and thirty-two certainly felt his age as he made his way from in front of his adopted mother's tomb, which was a monumental marble statue of the woman. He knew she would have hated it, but the people wanted to honor her for her actions, and he didn't have the heart to deny them their closure.

Violet Potter, Headmistress of Hogwarts and former head of the Auror department in the Ministry of Magic had passed peacefully in her sleep at the old age of one-hundred and fifty. She would've been relieved. She told him as he entered into the Auror force when he was 18 that she'd find a way to haunt him in his afterlife if he got himself killed before she kicked the bucket (her words near exactly).

He'd done as she asked. Though he had some close calls he'd survived his chosen profession with only scars to show for it. Now he was alive over a century later to say goodbye to the woman who'd raised him. Not all wizards or witches made it into their hundreds though. Their magic may expand their lifespan and life force, but it didn't mean everyone lived as long as him, Violet, or even Albus Dumbledore.

Victoire, his wife, had died at only one hundred. Most of the Weasley's from his mother's generation were also dead, having not lived as long as Violet herself had. Their descendants stayed strong. There were plenty of redheaded Weasley's remaining.

"That was a beautiful speech, grandfather," a very pretty girl with long white-blond hair said as he approached his large family.

In his life he'd had three beautiful children, many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and so on. The girl before him who looked so much like her great-great-great grandmother Victoire was Violetta Lupin, named after the woman everyone had come to honor. Though she obviously didn't look anything like Violet, Violetta also had a shade of green eyes, which, while not as vibrant or bright as Teddy's mother, were still a very pretty leaf green.

"I only spoke the truth, it's how she would have wanted it," Teddy said, his wrinkled face lowered as he closed his eyes in remembrance.

"I see," Violetta said, her eyes sad.

She looked back to were her husband William stood with their daughters. Five year old Isolt Lupin – named for her many-times great-grandmother, Isolt Sayre. And Ten month old Andromeda Lupin, also named after her many-times great-grandmother. Andromeda was much too young to know what was happening, and Isolt wasn't really aware of what had happened either. She just knew that she wouldn't be seeing Grammy Violet anymore.

Isolt always loved listening to Violet's stories, but so did many of the extended Lupin family, but Isolt was probably the one who saw Violet the most. She loved changing her looks to look like her Grammy – turning her naturally fiery red hair black and her leaf green eyes a more verdant emerald. Isolt was one of the few of Teddy's descendants to be a Metamorphmagus.

Like her daughter, Violetta was always close to her many times great-grandmother. The woman was a master in the field of Potions and so when Violetta showed an interest and aptitude for the subject, Violet offered to help Violetta learn. Nearly everything she knew about potions came from Violet, and three years after she'd graduated Hogwarts she'd returned to Hogwarts as the Potions Professor.

She looked back at her grandfather. "Do you think Gran will be happy, at rest now?"

Teddy grinned and chuckled.

"My mother once told me, death is but the next great adventure," he said. "I know she is, she always did enjoy adventures."

**.**

**.**

**.**

Death stared at the soul within his hands, a bright golden-white-blue orb which signified the soul of his mistress. The only one to not selfishly wish for the power of his Hallows. Neither did she actually hold them any longer, but the power of his Hallows had chosen and the imprint was in her soul (the reason for the soft golden pulse of the otherwise white-blue soul).

Violet had passed the Cloak of Invisibility down as was tradition. Teddy had received Christmas of his first year at Hogwarts, and Teddy had passed it to his only son James on the Christmas of his first year, and the tradition continued on.

The Stone of Resurrection was lost in the Forbidden Forest, and never found again. The Elder wand remained with its old master, entombed. He'd seen everything in her life, and honestly, he felt she deserved some sort of reward – if it could be called a reward. After all, once she was reborn he had no way of controlling the course of her destiny.

The paths she'd choose were her own. The only thing he could offer her was the knowledge of her first life and a promising family. Death hmm'd, before he walked closer to the unsuspecting woman who knelt beside the lake, washing clothes, her red hair falling down her back. He'd made sure to find suitable parents for his mistress, and the mortal before him would get to keep her first born in return for birthing his mistress. As death he could tell the fetus forming in her womb wouldn't have made it to three weeks without his interference.

His mistress would lose much, but gain acceptable replacements for the power she'd lose.

"Be well, Mistress," he muttered and allowed the soul to float towards the woman.

It sank into her abdomen and formed the soul of the new life growing inside the woman. The redhead, one of the last survivors of Uzushiogakure stood, a sense of something having occurred crossing her mind. Yet nothing was out-of-place. No foreign chakra signatures were in the area, and there was nothing to see..

Softly Uzumaki Suiren laughed. It appeared her mind was playing tricks on her again. Jin always said she worried too much. Within the next nine months the two survivors of the Uzumaki clan would welcome a new yet old soul into the world.

**.**

**.**

**EDITED: 8/2/16.**

** AN: As a reminder; A poll for Naruto's pairing in the story is up on my profile. I won't have it up for more than two weeks so if you haven't already voted in the poll please go do that. **


	2. Sachi

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Meddling In Fate. **

**Chapter 2: Sachi. **

Let it not be said that death wasn't an experience of uncertainty. Somehow Violet Potter, now Uzumaki Sachi, thought there would be more peace involved. Instead she'd gotten a new life, a second chance. In a world similar but completely different from the one she'd grown in before.

From the customs, to the technology, to the environment... everything was different in one way or another. She'd adapted to it, adapting was something she was used to and she was good at it.

Her memories hadn't come back all at once either. They came to her in segments, by her fourteenth year she'd watched over a century of memories through dreams. Here there was no magic, and she had tried and failed in her early childhood to use magic. Instead she had an abundance of chakra, even by Uzumaki standards.

Her parents were always proud of how special her chakra was, how quickly she learned. Thanks to her past life memories she was considered a prodigy. If she would have been without death allowing her memories to remain she didn't know. She didn't particularly care. She was just happy to have parents to be proud of her.

For several years after her birth the newly named Sachi had two loving parents. In fact they reminded her the tiniest of her first parents as Violet... from stories she'd been told of Lily and James in any case.

Both of her parents had the same shade of bright yet dark red hair (an Uzumaki clan trait apparently. She didn't mind she'd always been fond of red hair). Her mom had piercing forest green eyes, and her dad had dark violet eyes.

She learned as she grew that unlike in her first life this new world – she assumed it was another world she'd been born into, but from the technology she figured it might just be the distant future of the same reality. She didn't know and didn't care – had people with odd coloring, all of it completely natural so she never questioned the fact her father had a shade of purple eyes.

Sachi looked very much like her parents. Dark red hair, which was apparently exotic in the Elemental Nations, at least in shade. She looked a little like she had in her first life, but softer, a little less sharp and without the ill effects of being malnourished half her life.

Her eyes to her joy had remained the same eye catching emerald green (or as some would say, killing curse green though she'd always hated the comparison).

Sachi had learned a long time ago to keep the two lives separate. True, she was once Violet Potter but Violet Potter had died after leading a long life... and then been reborn as Uzumaki Sachi. Besides memories and some personality quirks they were different people.

They'd already led different lives with the fact Sachi had grown up loved by her parents, and her lifetime as Violet hadn't been so lucky.

Sometimes it was hard, because even in her incarnation there were reminders of her first life. The red hair was only a few shades off from Lily Potter herself. True, she now had better than twenty-twenty vision and had no need for glasses anymore, nor did she look like a female clone of James Potter, but she'd been born with other reminders.

Her eyes for one, and when she was born she'd been born with a strange birthmark. A birthmark which looked more like a tattoo to her. Her parents had said if they didn't know better they'd think it was a clan marking.

The Uzumaki didn't have a clan marking that made itself visible outside the body though, so they assumed it was just something unique to her. On the right side of her forehead was a rather large silver birthmark that looked like a lightning bolt.

From where the hairline started down nearly half of her forehead it sat, mocking her. Even if it barely resembled the cursed scar from her previous life which had sat on the left side of her forehead.

She should have known it would follow her in some way though. Being hit with the death curse twice in a lifetime was bound to leave a scar on ones soul. As she grew she began to accept the birthmark as a part of her, and even became glad to see it everyday when she looked at her reflection. It let her know she wasn't crazy, her first life really had happened.

By the time she'd accepted all her old memories back she truly accepted the fact that once upon a time she wasn't Uzumaki Sachi, and like any Uzumaki she accepted it all and ran with it. It didn't matter, she was still Uzumaki Sachi just as much as she'd been Violet Potter.

That was all that was needed for Sachi to stop questioning who she was. Was she Violet or was she Sachi? The answer was simple, she was both, but now she was Sachi and there was no going back to being just Violet.

All good things must come to an end though. In a life where she was trained by her parents to be a ninja, to harness chakra which reminded her a little of magic, she should have known it could happen. She hadn't expected for the attack to happen though, and neither had her parents.

Uzumaki Jin and Suiren both died when she was barely past her fourteenth birthday, they died holding off shinobi who attacked their secluded home in hopes of taking an Uzumaki or two back home with them.

She wasn't skilled enough even then to help against a dozen shinobi, rank unknown. All she knew was they were from Iwa, a place she'd never trust or like. Being who she was she fell into a slight depression. She could never save anyone she loved it seemed. Thoughts of those she'd lost in her first life rushed through her mind, and she knew she couldn't go there.

Hate never solved anything, and doing anything against Iwa was suicide. She was one person! Even as Violet she was only human. After months of lying low she began to travel. She visited the lands her parents were born and grew up in, Uzushio.

She visited other countries, keeping up with her training the entire time. Every year she visited her parents graves once, laid flowers down and moved on. For two years this was her life. Sachi was unable to use magic anymore, but thanks to her past life and strong soul she'd been born with very special chakra, even for an Uzumaki.

She could make the Uzumaki chakra chains, which not everyone could manifest or control, but her special chakra also gave her the ability to heal practically anything short of death, even regrow missing limbs and some lesser organs.

She couldn't regrow a heart or brain for example. It took a lot more chakra though to regrow something than it did to simply heal an injury. Sometimes she resented the ability because even with it she hadn't been able to help her parents when they needed it most.

Sachi had lived a rather sheltered, but also aware life before her parents died. Her mother wanted her to feel safe, and tried for many years to keep the darker details of their life hidden. Like why they traveled to new isolated areas to set up a temporary home.

Or why fūinjutsu was one of the first things she learned growing up, which meant her handwriting had to be perfect. Everyday she spent hours just focusing on calligraphy, the fact she learned quickly and had a near great memory helped.

Her father wanted her aware. He wanted her to know why they had to hide from the rest of the world most of the time. Why he left to do odd jobs for money – mostly jobs people needed ninja for but didn't have the money to afford one for.

Why they never gave their surname to acquaintances.

_'Remember to keep aware at all times Sachi-chan. A ninja must always keep their senses open even if they are focused on something completely trivial. Such as what your mother has cooked up for us for dinner tonight, haha!' _

Sachi smiled at the memory, jumping through an area of Konoha. Her parents had told her that Konoha was once close allies with Uzushio. At the very least she didn't need to fear, but to still be wary of them. Her seal of invisibility (something she'd created inspired by her invisibility cloak) was activated as she ran along the trees, before suddenly coming to abrupt halt.

Falling from a cliff side was a boy headed straight for the river Naka. She could sense the chakra of another still on the cliff, and the much fainter signature of the falling boy. The one still on land began to retreat, the chakra was full of anguish while the other boys was moments from death.

Narrowing her green eyes Sachi released her chakra chains, the silvery-golden chakra chains shot towards the boy and she headed for the banks of the Naka River. She gently laid him down, and to be honest he already looked like death.

He was probably pale complected but he looked too pale. Her chains disappeared and she frowned before placing her hands over his body.

They began to glow, as if she were using the Shōsen Jutsu (Mystical Palm Technique), but not only was the color off – being a silvery-gold like her chakra tended to be because of her special chakra – but it actually healed more much quicker than the common healing jutsu.

The injuries mended together, his chakra refilling enough to become stable, and she let her hands fall away releasing a deep breath. He'd be out for a long time most likely, and she'd have to heal his eyes somewhere else since it would take a lot more chakra and time to develop them.

Picking him up with her chains she took to the trees and headed for the one place she could think of no one would go – the Uzumaki clan's storage mask temple.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Sachi hummed as she wrung out the cloth she'd been using to lay across the boys, no more than a year older than herself, forehead. He'd begun running a high fever a day after she'd brought him to what was left of the Uzumaki clan's mask storage temple on the outskirts of Konoha.

After taking care of his other injuries, she'd slowly begun healing his missing eyes. They still weren't complete three days later. Even for someone with as much chakra as her it was taking far more than she'd determined. More than she had, which had never happened to her before. It wasn't easy draining an Uzumaki's chakra.

She suspected he may be someone with a kekkei genkai, in theory as she'd never done this before on more than animals and a few villagers who she'd offered her services to in the past, it would take far more time and chakra to grow an organ, even such a small one as the eyes, for someone with a bloodlimit.

Sachi couldn't help but wonder what had happened that he'd lost both eyes in such a manner. Like they'd been plucked from the sockets.

"Hm... who – " he tried to choke out, stirring from unconsciousness.

He tried to open his eyelids but they would not open completely. Could not open. She'd used a slight paralytic so he wouldn't freak out and harm himself and the progress of his healing eyes. At this point the forming eyes could not be exposed to much more than candle light.

"Stay calm. I'm a friend, I'm just trying to help you," Sachi said softly, retrieved the tea she kept on her. It was a special blend her mother had taught her. She lifted the raven haired boys head into her lap, tilting it slightly and tipping the flask towards his lips.

"Please drink some of this, it'll calm you and help with your healing," she told him.

After some hesitance from the half aware boy, that she still didn't have a name for, he did as she requested. Thanks to lessons from her mother and memories of her past life, Sachi was very good with herbs and crafting ways to mix them for healing or poisons.

She'd found that some potions from her past life could be replicated, but only some since most exotic magical plants and other ingredients didn't exist here. Some more mundane ingredients just didn't grow in the area she was currently in.

Over the years she'd found most herbs she knew from her first life could be found with enough determination. Dittany, aconite, and belladonna for instance were relatively easy to find when knowing the right places to find them. Uzu no Kuni had been a place were many exotic herbs grew.

Finding certain things for a potion was one thing, but being able to recreate them... without magic... she'd hadn't thought she would succeed. Despite the popular belief of Muggle-borns there was some magic involved in potion making. Maybe not wand magic, but the wand wasn't where the magic came from it was simply a focal point.

She no longer had magic so she'd expected the very basic headache potion (which was used to cure headaches, obviously) she'd brewed when she was little to do nothing but create a very nasty soup, that did nothing but taste bad.

She was shocked to find that it did in fact work, but she had a feeling it was because of her special chakra that it did. When she was reborn she'd traded magic for chakra, but they were close enough something as basic as potion making which took very little magic could still be used.

The biggest drawback was that there were very few potions that she could use because the majority took ingredients such as unicorn horn, or flubberworms... things that only existed in a magical world.

The art of making healing salves and using herbs for basic healing remedies – such as her tea – and mixing poisons for shinobi work was something her mother was a mistress of. It was similar to potion making, but was something that even a civilian could do if taught. It didn't need chakra or magic.

So like everything her parents had decided to teach her she took to it quickly.

She wasn't on the same level as her mother, but she was still above average with the skill. Having been a potions master (something that probably had Snape rolling in his grave) in her last life did help, but only so much.

She hadn't been a herbologist then, but her mother was very knowledgeable on herbs and their uses and that was taught to Sachi.

The tea was a very basic combination of herbs. It would only relax the unnamed boy and increase his immune system... and help with any dehydration he may have. Sachi sighed as she realized he'd fallen back into unconsciousness before she could asked him anything, like his name.

Sitting his head back on the mat she'd had him lying on, she returned her flask to her side, under her pale, but bright yellow sleeveless, knee length coat.

Who knew when he'd wake next.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Sachi cared for the boy with no-name currently for another week before he woke up.

By this time she'd finished healing his eyes, so when he opened them he was obviously shocked to find himself able to see. Even if the light was kind of bright against his vision.

Shisui knew he was alive, but he also knew he should be dead. No one should have been able to survive what he had. Shisui was shocked by the bright colors of the world he could see – another impossibility, yet he was doing it... he was able to see as clear as he had before Danzō's attack.

"W-what?" His voice cracked when he tried to speak.

There was the sound of shifting cloth before he saw shocking dark red hair... familiar in shade. Two bright green eyes framed by thick black lashes blinked down at him, and he became a little more alert in the presence of someone he'd never seen before, yet obviously had some shinobi training if she'd healed all his injuries to near perfection.

"Who are you?" he asked, his voice raspy from not being used in a while but otherwise fine.

Sachi smiled at seeing a pair of pure black eyes, so dark the pupil was hidden by the iris, staring back at her. She finally took note that his eyes were rather distinct for a male, before she handed him a cup filled with water. With some hesitance and a sniff of the cups contents he took the offered cup.

"My name is Sachi," she began. "Uzumaki Sachi. I saw you fall... I healed you."

His head jerked around quickly, and he groaned. He estimated it had been a few days since he was brought here from the stiffness in his body.

"Ahg... how long has it been? How exactly did you heal my eyes... they were gone! Did you transplant eyes or something?" he asked, rubbing his forehead lightly as he sat the mostly empty cup on the ground beside him.

His mind was still too foggy to process the surname she'd given him yet, but it was slowly falling in place.

Before she answered he saw her hands lift towards his temple, and glow an odd silvery-gold color opposed to the normal colors visible chakra took; green for medical ninjutsu, and blue or a teal color otherwise. Red if it was demonic in nature, sometimes you'd find black or dark purple chakra but that was rare, along with the Hatake white chakra.

He'd never seen chakra that looked like this though.

With a smile of satisfaction Sachi lowered her hands – though what she'd done had been a simple diagnostic jutsu medic-nin used commonly, it looked no different than her ability to heal. Her chakra was simply that color and always been.

Her parents told her it was most likely due to her special chakra and Uzumaki heritage. She felt it went a little deeper than that, but never mentioned it since she'd never told anyone of her first life.

To his surprise she suddenly shook her head.

"I didn't need to transplant any eyes... I mean." she bit her lip with a look of concentration, her brows creased together in thought.

"It's not truly a bloodlimit, since it is not something that could be inherited... as far as I know. But it's to do with my clans chakra... sometimes members will have special chakra. My special chakra allows me to heal nearly any type of wound short of death. That includes regrowing limbs, except the head obviously. It also allows for organs to be regrown... but like before nothing major like the brain or heart. It took me a while but I was able to grow back your eyes. Most of your other injuries were healed within two days."

Shisui's eyes widened. He'd never heard of that before, but the words on special chakra were familiar. He couldn't help but admit she had done an incredible job healing him. Better than any medic-nin he'd been to at any rate.

"That's incredible! Not even Tsunade of the Sannin could do something like that!" he exclaimed.

Sachi's eyes widened a bit and her jaw dropped to argue as her cheeks reddened. She'd heard of Tsunade, the Slug Princess, and she didn't think she was as good as the woman who was the best medic-nin in the last century. Shisui spoke up again before she could say anything though.

"Wait... did you say you were an Uzumaki?" he asked, and compared the teenager before him to the only other Uzumaki he'd met.

Uzumaki Kushina, though it had been about eight years since then. He'd only been nine when the Kyūbi attack happened, and his sensei had died with the Fourth Hokage – her husband. He realized instantly the red hair the girl had was the exact same shade as Kushina's had been. An Uzumaki trait.

Her skin-tone was similar, ivory but still a shade darker than his own. Her hair wasn't as straight as Kushina's, it was a little longer on the right side than it was on the left, but still framed her face. On her forehead, which seemed to part naturally on the right to show an odd birthmark (he doubted it was a tattoo since it looked too natural to have been inked on the skin).

A lightning bolt, silver in color. Maybe a clan marking, but he knew the Uzumaki clan didn't usually have visible clan markings.

Sachi was petite, about five foot three, no older than sixteen at the oldest but already developed in certain areas. Her eyes were doe-like and the brightest emerald green he'd ever seen. She was certainty dressed like a shinobi.

She wore an oddly bright pale yellow sleeveless, knee length coat. A black sleeveless turtle-neck, and lilac-lavender skirt that she wore thigh length form fitting black shorts under.

He could assume she had pouches under her coat, and he could barely make out a weapons holster on her left thigh. She had on black gloves, and black shinobi boots that came up to just below her knees.

He briefly noticed a strange symbol stitched onto the breast area of her yellow coat, a triangle, circle, and what appeared to be a straight line through the center of it. Similar to the Jashin symbol he realized with a start but he could see it wasn't. If she were to stand up and turn around he'd see a pale blue Uzumaki spiral on the back of her coat.

She was definitely an Uzumaki, he thought as he eyed the bright colors she seemed to favor.

Sachi nodded, not really expecting him to ask about her name. She didn't think he was old enough to recognize her clan name. Apparently it was more well known in Fire Country than she'd first thought.

"Yes. As for how long it's been, it's been about two weeks since I brought you here to the Uzumaki clans mask storage temple."

Shisui shot to his feet, stumbling as his legs nearly gave out under him. Sachi gasped and was on her feet in seconds, arms gripping the taller boy to help steady him. His arm ended up slung over her shoulder, and he blinked down at her.

Though Sachi didn't notice, Shisui's ears began to burn red as he kept the blush off his cheeks with will alone. He wasn't used to being so close to a girl, especially not one he'd just met. He'd had a girlfriend or two in the past, but they didn't work out and he'd known them practically his whole life.

Then there were the fan-girls (shudder). This was different though and he didn't have an answer for it. Not that it mattered right now, he chalked it up to gratitude for what the girl had done for him despite him being a complete stranger.

"Thank you for saving my life, Sachi-san," he said, now able to stand on his own. "But I need to go. I have to do something about my clan..." He trailed off.

Shisui turned to leave when a small hand reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Wait! You never gave me your name," she said, and he turned back and gave her a small smile.

"Shisui. My name is Uchiha Shisui."

She let his arm go and soon regretted it as he was gone before she could even blink. A shunshin, she realized, but much faster than anyone she'd ever seen using it. Soundless, without the usual distracting smoke, or leaves, and hand seals. He was simply there one second and gone the next.

She sighed, before narrowing her eyes.

"Damn me, my curiosity, and desire to help people," she muttered before making sure she had everything – such as scrolls and weapons – and stormed out of the temple.

She could track Shisui through his chakra signature. Once she'd been around one long enough she never forgot it.


	3. Saving Grace

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Meddling In Fate. **

**Chapter 3: Saving Grace. **

Shisui headed straight into the Uchiha District through one of the secret escape tunnels. He'd sent a summon ahead to the village and already knew enough time had passed that his note had been found by his clan, and his family had mourned.

Once he entered the streets of the compound he shuddered to a stop. Bodies were scattered around the district, some women, men, even children. He'd known what his failure had sentenced his best friend to do, but seeing it was another thing all together.

For a moment his heart was overwhelmed by the loss and anger he felt. The hatred; not at Itachi, but Danzō and even Fugaku who had thought the coup was a good idea.

He had to pull himself together though. He couldn't afford to loose himself to his emotions right now, so he ran until he found himself at his house, which wasn't far from where he'd entered the compound at.

On the floor lie his mother, an older woman around her late forties, mid-fifties. Mid-back length black wavy hair, as black as his and eyes just as dark. She was covered in blood, almost choking on it in fact but she was alive. Barely.

"Okaa-san," he muttered, knowing this was partially his fault.

Uchiha Asuka looked up, her eyes widening in shock, anger, and then finally becoming relieved. While Shisui was known as the fastest Uchiha to come out of the clan, a prodigy in his own right, Asuka was the best sensor ever born into the clan.

She had worked to memorize every last corner of her families chakra signature, so that she could always find them if needed. There was noway she could forget the feeling of her youngest son's chakra.

When Itachi had come she'd been beyond startled that he could do such a thing... for a moment she started to believe he had been behind Shisui's disappearance. She refused to believe he was dead. After her beloved Kagami's death, and then her oldest son, Obito's death in the Third War... she couldn't take another death.

"My baby..." blood streamed from the corner of her mouth as she got to her knees, shaking. "I told them, you weren't dead."

Shisui's eyes prickled with tears and he came to her side, placing a hand on her shoulder, trying to help her keep her balance, placing pressure on the large wound on her stomach. The blood just wouldn't stop, it wasn't anything he could fix.

"Okaa-san... I'm sorry. This is my fault."

Asuka smiled sadly.

"I... understand. The coup was a bad idea from the start. Kagami would have never agreed, he'd have been so proud of you though, Shisui. So proud... just like I am." Asuka sighed, smiling one last time before leaning up and whispering something in his ear.

Shisui's eyes suddenly widened, a single tear falling.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Sachi arrived only minutes after Shisui, a look of horror painted across her face at what she found. So much death around her. From the chakra or lack thereof Sachi could easily tell the living from the dead.

She decided then that this had something to do with Shisui's rush, but he couldn't have been responsible for this. Some of these were long dead.

Looking around at the carnage around her she made her choice, she would help who she could, starting with the children and then anyone else she could. Children were an important part of the future and whatever was going on the children didn't deserve this sort of fate.

Sachi steeled her resolve and took off in a run for the first chakra signature she could feel. This led her closer to where Shisui was, but also where a certain masked man happened to be.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"No please, spare my children!" a tall ash-brown haired, black eyed woman pleaded. She knew though her pleads were for nothing. She'd be showed no mercy, so she would give none.

She swung her arm at the orange masked man. The kunai she had in her hand went through him like he were a ghost, and the few seconds of shock on her face were all Tobi needed to attack. Slitting her throat so deeply her head nearly rolled off her shoulders.

A four year old and two year old wailed as their mother fell to the ground unmoving. Tobi cringed at the sound and walked towards the two cowering children. He raised his blade ready to finish it when he noticed the chakra signature of someone coming towards him.

A tantō coated in fire chakra slashed towards him, and he leaned back out of the way, avoiding a follow up kick by jumping backwards.

He saw a flash of red as her hair flew behind her, and she continued to kneel in front of the two children. Wrapping her hands around their shoulders for a split second. He tilted his head curiously at the mystery girl, who seemed oddly familiar.

"Now what do we have here?" he muttered, not bothering to play the fool. Sachi went through several hand-seals, muttered something and to Tobi's surprise the two children disappeared, as if they'd been summoned. "I see..."

Sachi's eyes widened at the speed the masked man showed, leaning backwards until her hands hit the floor to avoid being bisected at the torso. Pushing up, Sachi kicked her feet into the air, and gasped as she realized her kick had gone right through him.

"Ahg!" she gasped when a fist in-bedded itself in her gut, sending her out of her flip through the air and against the wall harshly.

She groaned before getting back to her feet. Glaring harshly at the masked man she made a single seal and smirked.

"Boom..." she muttered, and Tobi took a step back.

He had only a second to react as explosive seals on his cloak ignited. Sachi was sure she'd gotten him this time, even if he could somehow avoid attacks because of whatever jutsu he used to turn intangible, he couldn't possibly have time to use it this time.

She'd given him no warning... she stared in disbelief as the man in the mask just disappeared completely. Discretely she made a hand sign, then another few, before suddenly the redheaded girl gasped in pain. The sword the masked man had been using had exited through her chest.

Somehow he'd gotten past her defense and senses.

"That was impressive. You were able to somehow create seals without ink or a brush... an Uzumaki indeed. To be able to place them on my cloak without me noticing, truly impressive. None have gotten that close in a long while," Tobi's deep (and she'd admit to herself, attractive) voice said before she began to laugh.

She collapsed into lightning, and Tobi groaned at the shock sent through him from the blade. Stepping back he glared with his one visible eye. He had underestimated the girl, whoever she was (other than an Uzumaki. After seeing her ability with seals it was obvious to him what clan she was from).

The last time he'd even felt pain in a fight had been when he fought the Yondaime Hokage, and he'd put up a much better fight. Than again Tobi had been trying harder then, he'd honestly been testing the girl... but he hadn't thought she'd escape through the simple use of a clone and then switching with said clone.

Tobi growled, his eye narrowed. It didn't matter if he'd underestimated the girl or not, she needed to be stopped, but she could wait. He had a mission to complete here.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Running around the compound, and somehow avoiding Shisui the entire time, Sachi saved as many as she could. Many had to be healed, which drained her of even more chakra, added to the reverse summoning she was preforming on them.

It was much harder considering she wasn't at the location she was summoning them to. The only reason it was possible was because of the seal she'd found at the storage temple. It looked like it had been put there a long time ago, but with a little work it had become as good as new.

She'd decided to use it as a safe-house of sorts in the future, but hadn't thought it would come into use so soon. She was still running low on chakra, if she weren't an Uzumaki she would have dropped after the fifth person she reverse summoned to the temple.

As she leaned against one of the houses, hands on her knees, she took deep breaths. Sweat was wiped from her brow and she stood back up straight. She'd had two more run ins with the orange masked man, barely getting away from him each time.

He was seriously dangerous! She was taught the ninja arts by her parents, but she had mainly focused on fūinjutsu and herbal mixtures. Her father had taught her some ninjutsu, but his main focus was teaching her the Uzumaki taijutsu and to use a tantō.

That man was way out of her league, she was still too inexperienced. Even her past life didn't prepare her for someone of his skill, back then she'd had magic to reply on, now she had different skills at her disposal. Sometimes she really missed magic.

It was because of this she tried to stay away from the chakra signature that appeared to be his partner in crime. Shaking her head, she was startled when a hand reached out and grabbed her, pulling her between two of the houses.

She was pushed against the outside of one of the houses, and she found herself looking into two crimson red eyes. At first she was so shocked she screamed into the hand covering her mouth.

The shade of red... it looked so much like Voldemort's own red eyes that it surprised her. It took her a few seconds to be calmed down enough to realize these eyes were more vibrant, a bit darker... almost similar in color to her hair. There was also three black tomoe in each eye, they didn't resemble a snakes at all.

"Are you calm now?" Shisui asked, and slowly uncovered her mouth and released his grip on her shoulder.

"Shisui-san?" she questioned, blinking with some confusion over the whole situation. She'd pieced enough of it together to know there was a Massacre going on but the whole thing reeked of something bigger. "What's going on here!?"

Shisui sighed. "You just had to follow me didn't you, Sachi."

She grunted in frustration, and some pain as she jarred her shoulder with her sharp movements. Shisui's eyes darted to the area on her left shoulder, blood had soaked through the bright yellow coat, staining it. He hadn't noticed at first in the lack of light the night gave.

"You're hurt," he said, pealing the coat aside to look at the wound. It wasn't deep, and barely bled any more. He assumed she had healed it, but he didn't understand why she hadn't healed it completely. "Why didn't you heal it? Can you not heal yourself?"

She sighed. "There is a weakness to my ability. I can heal myself, but not to the same extent I can others. I don't know why... but wounds as severe as missing limbs or organs are something I can't heal on myself. I do heal quicker than most people though, because my healing ability aids my natural Uzumaki healing. As for this wound... I'm low on chakra, I need to reserve it and using it to heal such a wound completely is wasteful."

She shook her head. "It's not important. You didn't answer my question, and even more we should be out there helping survivors."

"You've been healing those you've come across..." Shisui trailed off, eyes narrowed.

On one hand he felt good about that, but then again if she was healing those who were all for the coup... well things could get ugly.

"I've only been able to save a few... children." she sighed, looking away as if ashamed. "It might sound cold, but I've been focusing mainly on the children. Their the most important for the future... it seems they also have a stronger will to live since I've yet to be able to save anyone above the age of eleven."

Shisui sighed, nodding in something like relief.

"I can't explain in detail what's going on here right now, Sachi-san. You're right we have to do something, but at the same time this was ordered. My clan has been planning to overthrow the leader of Konoha, this was the consequence of my failure to change their mind." He sighed.

"I see..." she said sadly, then turned her head upon hearing the heart shattering scream of a child. "What was that?"

Shisui's eyes widened, recognizing the sound of Sasuke's voice.

"Come on," he said, wrapping an arm around her waist and disappearing in a quick shunshin.

Sachi felt like her stomach had been left behind once they reappeared inside a house. She didn't complain though, it was much less nauseating then Portkeys, Apparating (though similar to a shunshin), or even the floo network.

She followed Shisui without asking any questions, her tantō (which was simply a short blade she preferred over longer blades. It had been her mother's, and was older, with a white wrapped hilt with a pale blue Uzumaki spiral proudly engraved).

When they entered the room they found the culprit gone, but three bodies. The male was dead, the female close to death, and the boy seemed unresponsive, had a little cut on his shoulder but otherwise was alive. Her instincts had her running to the side of the female first, but by this time she'd breathed her last.

If the heart wasn't beating there was nothing her ability could do. She couldn't heal the dead, so she turned her attention to the boy no older than eight.

"I'm sorry, I can't help them," she muttered, hovering her glowing hands over Sasuke's body.

Shisui nodded sadness in his eyes. He knew at least that Mikoto hadn't been as convinced that the coup needed to happen as her husband was. She was also a cousin from his father's side of the family – once or twice removed. Looking back at Sasuke he frowned.

He knew the signs of a heavy genjutsu, the only one he could think of with this kind of effect was the Tsukuyomi. At least now he knew Itachi had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.

"I'll go after him, you stay here with Sasuke," Shisui said, turning towards the exit. "Don't let him follow after us. He'd already been through enough tonight."

Sachi nodded and Shisui left after Itachi.

**,**

**.**

**.**

_**'Shisui... you're alive.'**_

Shisui sighed as the words echoed in his mind. He was indeed alive, though he had a feeling this would inconvenience at least one person (Danzō). He would have to watch his back for Root ANBU until he could figure out what to do about the old war-hawk.

Itachi had escaped, or more like Shisui had let him go. He knew Itachi's real motives, and he in part blamed himself for being unable to stop Fugaku as the Hokage had ordered him to.

_**'I'm glad. Take care of my brother for me, wont you Shisui?' **_

_**'Of course, Itachi.' **_

He'd replied before the younger teen left.

The ANBU had arrived about a minute later. To say they were surprised to see him of all people standing there was an understatement. They were still just staring at him, eyes surely wide under their ANBU masks.

"B-But how?" Cat asked, her voice breaking with a small stutter in her shock.

Shisui smirked, and answered. "Hey.. I'm back."

**.**

**.**

**.**

Sachi stayed in the main house with Sasuke for the next ten minutes, until three shadows dropped into the house. She'd been alert the entire time, just in case the masked man returned, but thankfully she hadn't seen him again. She assumed he'd left with whoever else had been responsible for the massacre.

"Miss, I'm sorry but you're gonna have to come with us to see the Hokage," a masked shinobi said, and Sachi nodded.

She lifted the boy Shisui had called Sasuke off her lap, handing him over to another waiting ANBU and standing.

"Sasuke is fine physically, I healed all external injuries, which was just a cut from a kunai on his arm. I can't heal psychological damage though. I also slipped him a sedative absorbed through the pores of his skin, so he wouldn't try and follow whoever Shisui was after," Sachi explained before she allowed herself to be taken into custody.

It was actually rather familiar to Sachi, who had memories of decades in the Auror department. The protocol for situations like this was probably similar (though as Violet she'd never dealt with a massacre like this, not since before the war ended).

To her surprise she wasn't taken straight to their T&amp;I division. Instead she was led to a building where the Hokage office was located, what was also the Shinobi Academy. Inside she saw Shisui already there talking to who Sachi presumed to be the Hokage. He was older than she'd imagined given the fourth head on the mountain.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes widened for a slight second when the ANBU escorted the teenager into his office. Apparently they'd found her just where Shisui said she'd be with young Sasuke. From the looks of it she hadn't put up a fight.

When Shisui, someone he thought was dead, had told him he'd been saved by an Uzumaki survivor he hadn't completely believed him. He'd thought Kushina was the last full-blooded Uzumaki after Mito died. Naruto was as far as he knew the last of his clan, and he'd taken more after Minato in appearance.

The ivory skin, somewhat round face, and dark red hair were all Uzumaki clan traits. Shisui had not been wrong, the girl could only be an Uzumaki with that shade of red hair. Hiruzen smiled.

"Ah I'm glad you're here. Shisui was just explaining to me how he survived and what happened." He removed his pipe for a moment before continuing. "I am Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage. Shisui said your name is Uzumaki Sachi."

Sachi nodded. "It is. It's a pleasure to meet you Hokage-sama. My parents said many things of Konoha. Though I wonder if you're the third, where is the fourth?"

Shisui looked down a bit melancholy, and Hiruzen sighed. She regretted asking, but she really wasn't up to date with Fire Country. They tended to stay in lesser known countries before her parents died.

"I assume you're not aware of the Kyūbi attack eight years ago then," Hiruzen muttered. "Our Yondaime unfortunately lost his life that night destroying the Kyūbi no Yoko."

Sachi's eyebrows furrowed together at this, knowing that couldn't be right. One of her later lessons in fūinjutsu and her chakra chains was that they were good for subduing a Bijū.

When she'd asked her mother had told her everything she knew of the nine tailed beast and there was no way to kill them as they were masses of chakra. They had to be sealed, which meant the Hokage wasn't telling her the truth.

She shrugged it off mentally. She didn't blame him, right now she was a stranger claiming to be from a near extinct clan. If the Kyūbi had been sealed she wouldn't be allowed the information.

"I'm sorry for asking, I usually don't travel far into the five great nations. I actually only did to see if I could find a secluded place to stay for a while before moving on," she admitted. "I am afraid my finding Shisui-san in time to save him was pure coincidence."

"I see, and how were you able to get into Konoha without anyone noticing?" Hiruzen asked. "Shisui said he was falling towards the Naka River when you found him."

Sachi nodded. "I hadn't truly noticed until I already passed the walls... my summon was running ahead of me and said she'd found a good area with herbs I was running low on. I decided to check it out, but Seina didn't tell me the area was inside Konoha. When I realized I decided it couldn't hurt since I wasn't inside the village area itself. I did activate a seal I created."

Sachi held out her wrist and pushed minimal chakra into it to make the usually invisible seal show up in dark ink, linking around her wrist.

"It's an invisibility seal, it not only turns me invisible but partially masks my chakra. I have pretty good chakra control so what isn't hidden I can hide myself."

Hiruzen blinked in surprise as he inspected the seal around the girls wrist, like most if not all Uzumaki clan seals there was the spiral in the center of it, on the inside of her wrist. It looked pretty simple, but he wasn't a fūinjutsu master as Minato, Kushina or Jiraiya were.

Still, to be able to create something like this so young, there was now no doubts in his mind Sachi was indeed an Uzumaki survivor. She was too young to have witnessed the destruction of Uzushio, so that meant her parents must have been survivors.

"That's very impressive, very useful," Hiruzen said.

"Yes, unfortunately one must have chakra reserves big enough to fuel it. Just an hour needs chakra of a low-level chūnin to work. If the chakra runs too low or is cut off then the seal releases."

"I see, it makes since that such a seal would have it weaknesses," he said, nodding. "I know you are not one of my ninja, but I would appreciate if you'd give me a report on how you helped Shisui and what happened in the Uchiha district."

Sachi looked at the taller boy beside her for a split second before nodding.

"Of course," Sachi said, and went on to explain her finding Shisui, her taking him to a safe place to heal him completely.

How she had to heal his eyes little by little since she was forced to regrow them as his had been plucked from the socket. At this Hiruzen looked at Shisui in worry and question – she realized the Hokage must be concerned about whoever had wanted to take Shisui's Sharingan for themselves.

She may not have been up to date on Fire Country, or Konoha as a whole, but word of clans spread even to the smaller countries. The Uchiha were not a name she was unfamiliar with. Give the clans history with the Senju, distant cousins of the Uzumaki.

She explained the injuries she'd healed, how Shisui had mostly slept through chakra exhaustion and the process of having his eyes regenerated. How she had followed him when he left, feeling something was wrong. She told them about her arriving in the compound to the massacre, and choosing to save those she came across, starting with the children.

How the temple she'd kept Shisui at belonged to the Uzumaki and inside was an old summoning seal, meant for their animal contracts but also easily used for reverse summoning of humans with the right sealing knowledge.

She told them how she'd cleaned up the seal in hopes of using it in the future in case she came across hostile ninja on her travels, as a safe house of sorts. How she'd used the seal to send any survivors to safety.

She even spoke of the masked man who she'd fought. That was news to them, neither had any idea of another helping Itachi.

"How many were you able to save?" Hiruzen asked, part of him relieved and the other concerned.

"About a dozen, give or take a few. Most are under the age of nine, I couldn't save anyone over the age of eleven. I can only heal those that are still alive. They're still going to need rest though, I can't heal blood loss with my ability alone. It'll take a medic-nin and medicine to heal something like that. I didn't have time to treat more than the fatal injuries," Sachi explained the best she could.

"You're healing ability, it's because of your special chakra?"

"Yes. My special chakra not only allows me to heal others like I did Shisui, but it boosts my natural Uzumaki healing as well. It also strengthens my chakra chains a little, and heightens my sensory ability," Sachi said, feeling no need to hide anything.

He reminded her a little of Dumbledore, and even herself in her later years before her death. It was probably for this reason she felt she could trust the old man. Hiruzen blinked, startled by how trusting the redhead appeared to be, but he also felt she was confident in her ability to leave Konoha whenever she wished.

He remembered what she said about the seal at her safe house, which he had some idea of the location if it was the place he thought, and realized she could probably reverse summon herself when ever she wanted. If not there then to the home of her animal summons.

The idea of another Uzumaki with such special chakra though, he had thought Kushina was the only one to possess the chakra chains, at least since Mito herself. He knew though that the Adamantine Sealing Chains of the Uzumaki clan, which could almost be treated as a kekkei genkai was just hard to control and harder to awaken. Those with a special chakra usually always did.

He was no expert on the Uzumaki clan abilities though, only a Uzumaki would be. He already knew Sachi probably would not offer more on her abilities than she already had. He did wonder if she'd accept his offer.

Not only would it bring a new capable ninja into the village, an Uzumaki, but maybe Naruto wouldn't be so lonely anymore. He did what he could but he was a busy man, he couldn't spend large amounts of time with the blond boy.

"Hm, I suppose you are confused on what happened tonight," Hiruzen began. "I can not give you much more than the fact that Uchiha Itachi, prodigy of the clan and son of the clan head, massacred the clan, except the ones you saved and his young brother, Sasuke."

Sachi frowned, a sad light in her eyes at the news. She'd always hated having to kill or see so much death, even as Violet, but she also wasn't above resorting to it. She knew this new world was filled with it as it was a world of Shinobi, and she'd been brought up to know that when it was kill or be killed your only option was to survive.

To survive one had to kill. It was the same when she'd been an Auror in her first life, though with magic one had a bit more ability to stun. While similar the jobs of Auror and Shinobi were very different. Shinobi were basically glorified assassins and mercenaries for a certain village. But it was the life she knew now, even if she wasn't affiliated to any of the Shinobi villages.

She realized Hiruzen was again not telling her everything, glancing discreetly at Shisui she realized he had told her the reason earlier. Maybe it was a slip of the tonque, but he'd told her the clan was ordered to be massacred, because they were going to rebel.

"I want to thank you, for saving those you could. I am sure this will help young Sasuke, knowing he is not the last of his clan. I of course ask you to take Shisui and one of my ANBU teams to the surviving Uchiha," Hiruzen said, and Sachi nodded.

"Of course," she began. "My summon, Seina, is currently with those conscious to keep them calm."

"Good. I do have one more question before I allow you to go. As you know I'm sure, Uzushio was once Konoha's greatest ally," the Hokage began, choosing his words carefully. "As an Uzumaki you are more than welcome to find a home here in Konoha. As a shinobi or civilian is up to you."

Sachi felt her mouth run dry. Of all the questions she hadn't been prepared for that one. Her life had always been on the move, her family was rather nomadic. They never stayed in one place for longer than two years, sometimes not even that. Her parents had lost everything when Uzushio fell, they were rather distrustful as a result. Especially her mother.

Having a home again, one that wouldn't change year by year... it was foreign to her. Yet also rather comforting. She remembered what having a true home felt like, from before her birth as Uzumaki Sachi. Grimmauld Place had been close but Hogwarts had always been her true home. She wondered if she could make Konoha her home? She didn't have only herself to think about though.

Sachi smiled thankfully at the elderly Hokage, before bowing politely.

"Thank you for your offer, Hokage-sama, but I must consult my Imouto about this before I make a decision for us."

Hiruzen and Shisui both looked startled by this, neither expected the girl to have a younger sister. To be honest they were unsure if the girls parents were even alive, she acted rather independent and never mentioned them in the present tense.

After a second the Hokage nodded.

"Take your time. The offer always stands."

"I'll show her to the gates," Shisui said. "We'll meet the ANBU team there. We should leave out as soon as possible."

"Do either of you need an medic before you leave? I noticed Sachi-san's coat is stained..." Hiruzen inquired.

Sachi placed a hand over the area on her shoulder, wincing just a little when it brushed the tender flesh underneath. The wound was pretty much healed except for what couldn't be more than a cut. Pulling her still low chakra into her hands there was a faint glow of her chakra before the wound was completely healed, not even leaving a scar behind. She breathed out, and despite the Uzumaki vitality she felt the wear of the nights events and last week and a half.

The hole in her coat had already repaired itself, thanks to seals lining the inside of the coat in such a way that her coat would have to be shredded for it not to repair itself. She'd have to wash it later to get the blood stains out though.

"That is indeed a remarkable gift," Hiruzen said, smiling kindly at the teen and Sachi couldn't help smiling back before following Shisui out of the room.

Once gone Hiruzen called for the ANBU and began giving them their orders.

Even after they had left he had a lot to think about.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Are you going to tell me what happened for you to be falling to your death when I found you?" Sachi asked as they walked through the silent village – many unaware of the tragedy that had befallen one of their most noble clans.

To Sachi the clan system was a bit like the Pureblood system of the Wizardry World, intermarrying and all. She supposed chakra stopped any defects as long as the relation was distant enough.

It was one of the reasons clans tended to have main houses and branch houses; though her parents had told her some clans took it a bit too far, ostracising their branch families and using them as little more than servants. She'd never liked that at all, she knew what it was like to be treated like a house elf.

At least unlike those in her old life who were blood supremacist, the clans were not unwilling to allow new blood to marry into the clan. For males it usually required them taking the brides clan name though. Especially for bloodline clans from what her parents had taught her growing up.

She and her younger sister (who she hardly told anyone she met about in order to keep her weaknesses to herself and protect her sister) didn't go to school as most civilians or even shinobi potentials did.

They were taught everything they knew by their parents. Mostly their mother who was almost always at home unless she went out to the nearest stream to do laundry. Living in solitude some things, some simple technology others in the villages had access to they did not.

Sachi had never minded. She loved her parents, her sister, and their way of life. Though she had memories of darker times she wasn't ashamed to admit she'd been naive.

She'd not thought of when her parents would die, that some shinobi that may find them would be a threat despite knowing why they hid away. She'd been a rather happy-go-lucky girl who was perhaps too wise and intelligent for her age. Most prodigies were though.

The day their rather quiet life was attacked by ninja passing through (of all things it had been ninja simply passing through, who happened to know how to spot an Uzumaki and bring down seals. Seeing a family with bright red hair hadn't helped make them blend in either).

Iwa may not have been as greedy as Kumo when it came to bloodlines, but they apparently couldn't pass up the opportunity to return with some of the last Uzumaki, full blooded Uzumaki's at that. Even if the Uzumaki gifts couldn't technically be called bloodlines they still ran in the clan

Both her and her sister's lives were turned inside out that day. Being older and having the memories she did she had handled it a little better, but she'd still been depressed for weeks afterwards.

She'd pulled through because it was what she did, she survived. She'd always been a survivor. She also couldn't afford to give in to hate or fall to pieces, not with someone else depending on her.

Sachi realized as she was lost in thought that she needed to hurry. She'd been gone two weeks, Karin would come looking for her if she didn't get back soon. Even if she had sent one of her messengers to make sure her sister stayed safe and inside the barrier seals around their current safe-house.

Shisui had noticed the redheads descent into her own mind, and the emotions that flashed through her eyes. As they neared the front gates he wondered If she would accept the Hokage's offer. He was a little upset she would be leaving soon, he felt he owed her a debt. Not only for saving his life but for saving the life of some of his family as well.

Before Sachi had shown up he'd talked to the Hokage, who was just as shocked as the ANBU that he was alive. After briefing Hiruzen on what had happened after he'd gone to complete his mission of using the Kotoamatsukami on Fugaku, the two had shortly discussed what to do about Danzō having his right eye.

The old warmonger might have had the best interest of Konoha in-mind, but what he'd done was too far for even the Hokage to ignore. A plan had not been reached yet, but what was known was that Danzō could not be allowed to keep Shisui's eye. It had to be destroyed. There was also a watch on the bodies of the deceased Uchiha, all with active Sharingan must be accounted for.

"I can't say much. I was given a mission, on my way there I was ambushed by a certain man who did not wish to see a peaceful end to it. Instead he attacked me, and caught me off guard stealing my right eye. I later found my best friend and entrusted him with my mission, giving him my left eye so it would not be taken as well. I fell backwards off the cliff, and that's when you found me."

He felt he owed her the truth, and he had been vague enough that she knew nothing besides the fact his mission had gone wrong and he'd ended up near death.

"Thank you, for not ignoring the question completely," Sachi said, knowing there was more to it but also knowing he couldn't say anything more on the matter without her being a shinobi of the leaf that was allowed in on the truth by the Hokage. Most shinobi villages worked like that.

"I should be thanking you. If you hadn't followed me Sasuke would probably have been the only survivor. I don't know much about healing," Shisui admitted.

He felt a little ashamed he hadn't even thought much on trying to save anyone. He'd been to caught up in his own problems, and the fact he knew the truth of the massacre. He hadn't even thought of the few children the clan had, to be honest he hadn't thought the Hokage would order their death as well. Most weren't even shinobi yet.

"You're welcome," she said, smiling and they both stood a little more alert when a team of five ANBU appeared at the gate.

They were all dressed in similar armor, one stood in the front, most likely the captain of the team. The mask was that of a dog, and there was distinctly styled silver-gray hair sticking up.

"It's good to see you're alive, Shisui," Dog said, and Shisui nodded his acknowledgement.

The dog-masked ANBU almost seemed startled by her, staring for a few seconds longer than necessary before he shook his head.

"My apologies," he said. "You remind me of someone I once knew. Hokage-sama said you were leading us to where the survivors are. I'm Dog, this is my team; Cat, Squirrel, Panther and Shark."

"It's nice to meet you, I'm Uzumaki Sachi," she replied, not bothering to hide her clan name.

The fact she'd given it to Shisui when he woke spoke of how tired she'd been, and after being around him over a week his chakra never once felt threatening to her. She considered herself a rather good judge of character, and ones chakra signature usually said a lot about a person.

Shisui's chakra was rather calming to her, even with the little darkness she noticed in it. Most Uchiha appeared to have traces of it... those with the Sharingan at least. She figured telling these ANBU wouldn't be of any risk, they most likely had been briefed by the Hokage anyway.

"We should go, before it gets closer to sunrise," Sachi said. "Just follow me. It's right on the outskirts of Konoha."

**.**

**.**

**.**

Reaching the Uzumaki clan's storage mask temple didn't take long at full speed. The ANBU seemed almost expectant of where they were headed, she supposed the Hokage was one of the few still aware of the old storage temple.

Once inside they saw a large black panther with a silver diamond mark on it's forehead. The panther had startling red eyes and was rather intimidating. When they walked in it was comforting a few of the awake children.

"Hime, you've returned," Seina, the panther summon greeted. She inspected the other six; she recognized Shisui right away and accepting the ANBU as non-threats.

One of the children looked up, spotted Shisui and leaped through the air and hugged his leg (the girl could be no older than four and was small in stature).

"Cousin Shisui!" she nearly yelled. "I told mama you weren't dead!"

Shisui smiled, patting the top of the girls head. He recognized her as his mother's sister's daughter. He was happy to see her alive, and a little ashamed the whole ordeal had come to what it had. The once proud Uchiha clan, in one night, had been reduced to one adult, and a dozen children. None of which were even shinobi yet.

The other children now awake looked relieved and happy to see Konoha-nin, especially Shisui who most recognized instantly. Of the twelve Uchiha children she'd been able to save they ranged in age from one to eleven years old.

"You saved us," a boy about six said, walking over and Sachi nodded. "Thanks, Red-san."

Sachi blinked at the nickname, thought it could have been worse, before grinning. "You're welcome. I'm glad you're alright now."

**.**

**.**

**.**

It took a while to get all the children back to the village and to the hospital. After which Shisui walked with her back to the gates.

"Thanks again for all your help, Sachi-san," Shisui said.

"Just Sachi is fine..." she trailed off and Shisui chuckled.

"Then just call me Shisui," he told her and she smiled.

"Maybe I'll see you around, Shisui. Good luck with your clan," she said, shaking the offered hand. Her long red hair blew behind her in the light breeze, and as their hands fell away from each other Shisui gave one last wave and turned to leave. Sachi did the same.

For now the two went their separate ways.


	4. Root Of The Decision

**AN: So, I want to thank everyone for reviewing. Here is the next chapter, I hope you all enjoy it. **

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Meddling In Fate. **

**Chapter 4: Root Of The Decision. **

_**Ottery St Catchpole;**_

_**Year 2006:**_

_A woman no taller than five foot five stood at a table laughing at her best friends story. She had long messy-wavy black hair, pale skin, and beautiful wide emerald green eyes behind thin red framed glasses. _

"_Seriously?" _

"_You should have seen his face," Hermione commented, and Ron sighed while rolling his eyes. _

"_You two shouldn't team up on me, it was an honest reaction," he said. "Vi, you weren't that much better when Teddy was a baby in your care." _

"_Hm, I didn't adopt Teddy until he was nearly a year old," she said, smirking. "I also knew how to take care of a baby. I did a little babysitting when I still lived with the Dursley's." _

"_Yeah, but for the first month he was in your care you were completely freaked out," Hermione pointed out, smiling. _

"_I suppose, but I just pegged Ron as someone who would take the news better, considering how big a family he comes from. I mean he was nearly two when Ginny was born, weren't you?" Violet said, and Ron shrugged. _

"_Not really, Ginny was born in August, my second birthday wasn't until March of the next year," Ron said. "As for the news, I am exited now. It was just a shock. We've been trying for years... we assumed it just wasn't going to happen for us." _

_Violet smiled, happy for her friends. A smaller part of her was feeling the opposite. She had Teddy, who she saw as a son, but sometimes she wished she had what Hermione and Ron did. They had each other, and now they were expanding on their family. _

_After so many failed attempts at love, twenty-six year old Violet was nearly ready to throw in the towel. Hermione noted the sadness hidden beneath Violet's smile and felt for her best friend. Fate had never been kind to the raven haired girl. _

_Even after the war the only happiness she found was with her friends who were all paired off now, even Ginny was married and expecting a child of her own. Violet only had herself, a few house elves, and Teddy. _

"_So when are you due?" Violet asked, and Hermione placed a hand on her lightly swollen abdomen. _

"_They believe around mid-October or early November," she said. "Actually we wanted to ask you something while you were here." _

"_That's right," Ron began, grinning. "When the baby is born, we want you to be the godmother. If it's a girl we want to name her Rose Lily, after you, if it's a boy we haven't really decided yet." _

_Violet Lily Potter stared at her friends in surprise, before a wide grin broke out across her face. _

"_I would be honored." _

_._

_._

_._

**Present Day (Year 1233 AC);**

**September:**

She made it back to the safe house, which was actually just a cave close to Tanzaku-gai. There was a river close by for needs such as laundry and water, situated in a small clearing.

It was somewhere no one really wondered into, and Sachi had with the help of Seina placed a genjutsu up. It would work as a ways to confuse anyone who knew of the place.

They'd walk right past it without realizing it, at least a civilian or low ninja would. Someone who was skilled in genjutsu probably wouldn't be fooled for long. The cave was protected by Uzumaki barrier seals, only someone with knowledge of seals or an Uzumaki could get through them.

It may seem almost like she was being too paranoid, but it was how her parents had raised them. To always be aware of their surroundings, that there was no such thing as too prepared.

That it was better to be safe than ambushed or dead, but when they were very little their parents would say ambushed to spare them some gory details on what 'dead' meant. Sachi already knew, but Karin was much more innocent minded than Sachi had ever been.

She had been correct to assume her sister was becoming restless. She'd never been gone for so long before. Two weeks at the longest, anymore than that and Sachi brought Karin with her while she travelled for supplies and new places to hide.

They spent at least four months of the year in what was left of Uzushio, but usually not until the the fall when the storms weren't quite as bad around the island. Karin was only eight (her birthday being in mid-June) and was the surprise child her parents hadn't known they wanted.

Obviously the two looked alike, being sisters. There were differences; Karin's chin was slightly more pointed like their mother. Her nose a bit more upturned, and hair a shade lighter but still just as brilliant as any Uzumaki, much like their mothers.

Karin's hair was somewhat asymmetrical, like Sachi's own, but was also straighter – at least on the right side. Sachi's red hair was a shade darker, and asymmetrical in the way that the left side was somewhat shorter than the right – but that was in part on purpose.

It also had a similar unkempt quality to it, like Karin's and their father... but the longer it got the more tamed it became. Even so Sachi was happy to find it was nowhere near the unruly mess the raven locks she'd possessed in her first life had been.

The resemblance didn't end there, but neither did the differences. Sachi had ivory skin a shade lighter than Karin, and her eyes were more doe-like with thicker black lashes, but still of similar shape to Karin.

She had small tear troughs inset next to her eyes, but they were hardly noticed much like the ones their mother had possessed, and Karin did not. Karin had once had the need for glasses, which Sachi had found a bit ironic, but she had worked hard to gain control of her ability enough to heal the vision problem her sister had.

Karin had always been self conscious of her glasses, and Sachi knew her parents worried Karin would be caught by enemies without them. She was practically blind without them after all. So when Karin was five, Sachi had used her special chakra ability to heal the damage to her eyesight.

It wasn't as difficult as regenerating missing eyes, but it also took a bit of time and chakra to do. There were exceptions, she couldn't heal someone's eyesight if said person were blind from birth.

It also wouldn't matter if she gouged their blind eyes out and regrew them since they would grow back identical to the ones before – ergo blind (the only exception was if they were blinded in an accident). Despite no longer needing glasses, Karin still wore the black framed glasses, but the glass inside them was just plain glass.

It was simply a way to make opponents underestimate her, and she had a thin blade hidden inside the frames. Like her sister she wore somewhat brighter colors. A lilac kimono top, with black obi, dark red skirt, black shorts underneath, black shinobi sandals, and a dark red and lilac track-like jacket.

Her hair was much shorter than Sachi's thigh length hair, falling to the nap of her neck which made it seem spikier and messier on one side while it fell slightly longer on the opposite and completely straight. Instead of their mother's green eyes or their father's pupil-less dark violet, Karin had inherited the pupil-less red of their paternal grandmother.

Sachi waited a while before bringing up the Hokage's offer to Karin. The smaller redhead was already upset at how long she'd been gone, leaving her to have to cook her own meals which one of Sachi's panther summons would catch.

Without a fire affinity Karin would have to rely on the civilian ways of making a fire to cook any meats (she hadn't gotten that far in training though, so having a fire affinity wouldn't have helped her anyway). Sometimes Sachi swore her sister was bipolar with how her moods changed.

More than wanting to give Karin time to cool down, Sachi had wanted to think it over more herself. She hadn't exactly been in the best of mindsets when the offer was given. She had been low on chakra, seen a massacre, nearly died a few times because of some masked man, and only ended up making a new friend she might never see again.

The thought of having a home again was very appealing.

"I thought you were against settling down in any shinobi village after mama and papa?" Karin asked one night as they sat around a small fire for dinner, adjusting her glasses and brushing a strand of bright red hair out of her face.

Sachi sighed as she pushed the rabbit stew around in her bowl.

Though they did odd jobs around close by villages for a little money, most of their food needs did come from the wild.

The vegetable were bought with what little money they had, and sometimes they'd eat at the cheaper restaurants in villages they passed through, but mostly Sachi cooked everything they ate. Usually any meats came from whatever Seina or another summon caught.

Karin was right though, in part. She'd been more than wary of the other villages, especially Iwa since it was their shinobi who had killed their parents. She'd been told since she was young that ninja could hardly be trusted completely, unless you knew them well enough to give them your trust.

Konoha was the only village her parents had any good words about, and Suna was a place they were uncertain about. Understandably her parents didn't trust shinobi of Iwagakure, Kumogakure or Kirigakure as they'd been part of Uzushiogakure's destruction.

Sachi understood somewhat how these villages were run, so she had been against joining any of them after they were left on their own. Instead insisting the nomadic lifestyle was good enough, it was hardly different than life had been before.

Even Konoha though had its darkness, the Uchiha Massacre was one of the big ones. The fact they had been unable to help their cousin village in its time of need being another. Sachi was wary of Konoha for the fact they had ordered the killing of an entire clan, but she didn't know the full story.

Surely there had been plans to settle it peacefully which had fallen through. Apparently someone had sabotaged the last attempt if Shisui's situation was anything to go by.

Truthfully all she had to go on was what had slipped out, what she was told and had pieced together. From what she did understand she couldn't fault the Hokage for protecting his people, more life would have been lost than what was had a civil war been started by the Uchiha.

She had already decided there was no threat to her and Karin in Konoha, as far as the Uzumaki being massacred (if two people could be called a massacre, she was pretty sure it couldn't). the Uzumaki had always been a peaceful unless pushed clan. They were also unyieldingly loyal and family oriented.

"More like extremely wary," she corrected, a ghost of a smile on her face. "The Hokage gave me the offer and then did nothing to stop me, an Uzumaki and valuable asset, from leaving the village. I believe we can trust him at least."

looking up at the stars she continued. "Since mom and dad we've been wondering on our own. If you'll agree I think joining Konoha could really give us a home. Mom and dad would have wanted that I think, but I didn't want to agree without talking to you first, Imouto."

Karin smiled, inspecting her older sister who commonly wore her emotions on her sleeve around her. She'd always looked up to Sachi. She was older and a prodigy... it showed with how wise and capable she was.

For two years they'd taken care of themselves, or more like Sachi had shouldered everything in order to take care of Karin who was only six when their parents were killed.

At times though Karin was a little envious of her sister. Sachi had no need for glasses, though neither did Karin any longer thanks to Sachi. Sachi was better in the shinobi skills taught to them, she had a level of skill with the Adamantine Sealing Chains that Karin didn't.

Karin had an incomplete version called Adamantine Attacking Chains.

Karin did have budding skill as a sensor though, but Sachi was also a skilled sensor, and had a form of special chakra she couldn't hope to match even with her healing bite (which was not an uncommon ability among her mother's side of the Uzumaki clan family tree).

In Karin's mind Sachi was also prettier, she learned quicker, and was smarter.

Sachi wasn't naive to her sister's insecurities, though why she had such self confidence issues at eight was beyond her. She reassured Karin that everyone was different and that she just learned differently than herself.

The two sisters shared a strong bond, even if Karin thought Sachi was overprotective at times. Sachi had her flaws and weaknesses, even Sachi acknowledged this. She was reckless, blunt, temperamental and secretive at times.

She could either trust too easily or not enough. She was also brave, imaginative, kind, bold, protective and sometimes abrasive with a saving-people-thing.

It was almost like she was compelled to help those in need, which was how they commonly got their money by Sachi offering up her healing skills.

She rarely used her special healing ability if the village was close to a hidden village though. She didn't want rumors of a miracle healer running around.

She was once more outgoing, more naive before their parents died though Karin had been young back then. Sachi had kept some of these traits but no longer wore them on her sleeve. She still enjoyed a joke and or good prank and loved to laugh.

Not all were good traits to have but they weren't bad either. They made her who she was, then and now. Karin herself was similar to her sister, but calmer to an extent. She was more thoughtful before she acted, a bit more cunning and ambitious.

She wasn't all that into practical jokes (but what she didn't know was even in this life the Marauder spirit had followed Sachi), but she was temperamental and a little eccentric.

Slowly she began to smile.

"I guess having a home wouldn't be so bad," Karin said.

Sachi smiled cheerfully at her sister and nodded. She had hoped that Karin would warm up to the idea.

"Did you asked about dad's cousin... I mean did you see her or..." Karin trailed off, unsure how to ask about the possible family member still alive.

Sachi frowned, eyes narrowing and she sighed. She had meant to ask, but truth be told she'd been so out of it when she'd been brought before the Hokage asking about a cousin once removed was the last thing on her mind.

Uzumaki Kushina had been the heiress of the clan before a very respected former heiress, who had married Senju Hashirama to further tie Uzushio and the Uzumaki as allies of Konoha and the Senju together, had asked for one with very special chakra to come to Konoha to live.

With great hesitance and discussion amongst the clan, Kushina was sent.

Kushina had been her father's first cousin, Kushina's mother being Uzumaki Jin's aunt – the sister of his father. They had been a few years apart, and Kushina had been more like a younger sister than cousin.

When Kushina was sent to Konoha, as the younger brother of Uzumaki Kotone who was the current clan head with her husband Uzumaki Ryūsei, Uzumaki Kenshin's family took over and Jin became clan heir. He obviously hadn't gotten to be clan head for long.

Uzushio fell when he was barely twenty-two years old, and recently married to his wife who was a few years younger than him at nineteen.

They had survived the genocide, but in the end any survivors were separated in either the panic or by choice. Jin had thought of finding Kushina, but felt she was safer in Konoha and he was positive that was where she was. He never tried to find her.

"I didn't," she said regretfully. "At the time Kushina was the farthest from my mind. She's probably still there though, we can ask the Hokage when we head that way."

"Sure, I hope she's as nice as papa said..."

She grinned, assured her sister she probably was and took her now empty bowl from her.

"I'll go down to the water and wash the bowls," Sachi said.

Karin nodded, and drew her jacket closer to her body. The night was unusually cold for September and being in the Land of Fire. Unlike her sister Karin wasn't any good when it came to cooking. She remembered watching both her mother and sister cooking all the time when she was younger.

Sachi had tried to teach Karin, but the younger girl just had little skill with it. Sachi was practically a natural, but that came not only from her mother teaching her to cook, but from memories of cooking in her first life.

Seina lay next to the log her sister had been sitting on, her head resting on her folded paws. Sachi had begun storing the left over stew and cleaning the large pot she'd cooked in. Two storage scrolls of medium size laid beside her.

All her scrolls were attached to her waist and lower back, or stored in her pouches and sealed inside seals inked onto her arms only to be noticed when she put chakra into said seals. It was convenient and a little less bulky than a backpack.

Karin leaned back where she sat to get a better view of the stars in the rather clear night sky above her. She didn't take note when Seina's head raised up, her red eyes narrowed. Seina surpressed the growls raising in her throat. From the stiffening of her summoners shoulders she thought Sachi had sensed them as well.

"Young one, go join your sister," Seina ordered softly.

Karin looked at the large panther startled, but had long sense learned not to argue with her sister's bonded summon, or any of the Panther clan to be honest. She'd known them her whole life. Before her sister had signed the Panther summoning contract it had belonged to their parents.

_'Hime, we have someone watching us... more than one I believe,'_ Seina thought through the telepathic connection the Panther clan had with their summoners.

Sachi's first instinct was to jump up and react, but to her credit she did little more than glance up from sealing the bowls into a scroll. She placed the scroll back into the hip pouch on her left side (she had another on the right as well, along with a slightly smaller than normal medical pouch at her back).

Discretely placing a hand on Karin's arm she watched as a small seal array spread across it, and Karin's wide eyes looked up into her sister's calmer green eyes.

"If something happens, push chakra into the seal," she muttered and Karin slowly nodded, forcing tears back from her red eyes. Hadn't their mother said something similar? _'If anything happens you take your sister and you run!' _

She stood up, turning her back to the stream and feigned some surprise when a cloaked ANBU appeared from the tree-line. Their chakra signatures were so hard to feel even for her she reasoned the strange ninja were highly skilled in hiding it from sensor-types.

It was commonly something taught to those who specialized more in stealth and assassination. Seina growled, crouching low to the ground with her teeth bared.

"Uzumaki Sachi, Danzō-sama demands your presence."

She raised an eyebrow. She didn't know who this Danzō was but she already didn't like him.

"Who are you?" she asked, falling into the basic Uzuken stance (Uzuken, meaning Vortex Fist, was the Uzumaki clan taijutsu).

"That is not something you need to know. You and your sister will be..."

Sachi didn't let the weird ANBU say anything more. She allowed Seina the chew toy she had been begging for. Either the ANBU didn't see Seina, which she found hard to believe since even in the dark Seina's ruby red eyes nearly glowed, or he or she didn't care to see the Panther as a threat.

Maybe they didn't realize she was a summon, she wasn't much bigger than an average panther, still being young within the panther clan, and she had not made any actions common of a summon yet. Other than to talk to Karin, and they may have not noticed that she'd done so so quietly.

It was hard to say the ninja's motivations, but it was the last mistake the ANBU made. While he was able to avoid his throat being ripped out for the moment Sachi had no doubt Seina could handle a ninja. She had been trained very well and was very adapt at the panther clans fighting style which was being taught to Sachi slowly over time.

She pivoted on her right foot, drawing her white handled tantō as she did so. Swinging out with such precision the ANBU behind her barely raised their own to deflect off the slash that would have ended his life. With their blades crossed Sachi took the second to call out to her sister.

"Karin, go now!"

She noticed with some panic the ANBU coming into the clearing. Shaking slightly the younger redhead had no choice but to do as ordered. She pushed chakra into the seal placed around her arm and disappeared before any of the Root ANBU could do anything.

Sachi let out a small sigh of relief as she kicked the one she had locked blades with back into the stream.

"Two down!" Seina called back to her summoner, her large dagger-like canines stained by blood.

"Follow Karin, Seina," she told the summon, and placed her tantō back on her lower back above her medic bag.

Her green eyes darted back and forth between the remaining ANBU surrounding her as Seina disappeared from the clearing with some hesitance. The panther trusted her bonded summoners call though.

Sachi couldn't say for sure what village they were from, but these ANBU looked eerily similar to the ones who had been with her and Shisui to the storage temple. She doubted this had anything to do with the Hokage, since they had mentioned someone by the name of Danzō. There was also the fact there was differences between these ANBU and the ones who she'd met.

Starting with the glimpse of red under their cloak. She'd seen the ANBU armor of Konoha and there was nothing red about it. The masks also seemed a bit plainer.

"Six to go," she muttered, and attacked the Root ANBU closest to her.

She kicked out, intending to take the ANBU's head off with her fire chakra imbued kick, but her foot sailed over their head in a fiery trail.

As her foot touched the ground she had already raised her left arm to block a second attacker. Apparently they were not willing to let her fight them one on one. Ducking and weaving through the rather synchronized attacks from the six remaining shinobi, she cursed when some of them proved faster than her.

They were skilled, definitely worthy of their rank.

Sachi made only a little progress as the seconds turned to minutes. She was given hardly any room to form a plan of attack other than hand-to-hand combat. Some had blades, which made it more difficult for her, and she regretted putting her tantō away.

The only reason she had was because she wasn't very skilled in kenjutsu, she was better with taijutsu.

She knocked one off their feet by severing the Achilles heal with wind chakra, and knocking another back a few feet with a flame covered fist. She still had four on her, and she was only able to avoid two before one sunk their fist into her gut seconds later. An elbow from another of them rammed into her back.

She slammed into the ground face first and gasped at the heavy foot that crashed onto her spine.

"Hurry, place the seal..."

Sachi groaned, the bruises forming over her body and the cuts which were no more than annoying flesh wounds. It would all heal by the next day, leaving her without a scratch, but now she had to get out of this. She couldn't allow whatever this seal was to be placed on her. She refused to have her freedom taken from her.

As one of the ninja got closer to her in order to place the seal she released her chakra chains. The one practically on top of her got the worst of it, ending up nearly shredded by the silvery-gold chains.

They were usually like any other of the clan. She'd become so adapt at them since she awakened them that she could change them subtly.

In battle the chains could change from the normal variety, to a more deadly version. These had thorns running along the length of the chains, like the stem of a Rose. The kunai tips were also more crescent moon shaped than straight.

The one keeping her down was nearly ripped apart as a result, while those too close were seriously injured. She pushed herself to her feet more sluggishly than she meant to. Only one remained almost unharmed by her chains, having reacted in time to avoid them.

The others were either wrapped up in her chains or impaled on them. Sachi wiped blood from her brow, grimacing subtly at the pain when she brushed against a rather deep cut on her forehead.

"I don't know who Danzō is, but I wont allow you to report back to him," she muttered, having already gone through the hand seals needed for her jutsu. "Kuchiyose: Kage no Totsugeki (Summoning: Shadow Assault).

Her chains faded from the dead ANBU, dropping their bodies to the ground as the one still standing readied for an attack, yet it took him a second to realize his mistake. He turned in time to see two panthers a little bigger than a pony lunging at him from the darkness (and though the technique used the word for shadow, technically they were summoned through the darkness of night).

One latched onto his throat, the other onto his shoulder. It was bloody to watch, and she had to force some bile down. She'd been forced to kill before, bandits mostly, and of course there were a few occasions from her first life, but she wasn't quite so used to it as she let on.

She had cursed death and any other deity she could think of for not letting her rest in peace, but it was hard to stay mad when she'd been given this second chance to have a family in a way she never got to in her first life. She had grown to accept it, and was actually rather thankful for her new life.

She just prayed that this was an once in a lifetime opportunity, she didn't want another lifetime after this one ended (which would hopefully not be for a long time, she didn't have a death wish). Once it was over, and Sachi was sure she was alone she sunk to her knees and sighed deeply.

She had cuts, a few deeper gashes and bruises which were already steadily healing. She could go about healing it herself soon enough, but she barely felt these wounds in her adrenaline. Her chakra wasn't greatly spent and was quickly climbing back up to where it always was.

The two panthers came to sit before her. Both were a beautiful dark blood red, almost like the Uzumaki hair. One had golden eyes while the other had silver – the sun and the moon – yet both had silver diamonds on their forehead like all those in the panther clan did.

Hikage had been her father's bonded panther and the one with the golden eyes (Hikage being a bit of a pun on his golden eyes, since Hikage could translate to 'shade of the sun').

Hikage's sister was the silver eyed panther; Amatsuki (which could be translated as 'heavenly moon'). She was her mother's bonded summon. They had continued to watch over Sachi and Karin and work with Sachi to honor their fallen summoners. They were also rather fond of both girls, having known them since birth.

"Ya called for us, brat," Hikage said, grinning in the only way a panther could. Blood still stained the panthers teeth and she grimaced slightly at the sight.

"Don't be so uncouth, brother," Amatsuki said, shaking her head. As if she hadn't just helped tare a man to pieces.

Hikage snorted, and Sachi chuckled at the siblings antics.

"Drag the bodies into a pile, I need to rest for a moment before we head towards the Uzumaki Clan Storage Temple. Seina and Karin will be waiting there."

_I hope,_ Sachi thought as she took the seconds she had to rest and heal herself. Her back was killing her when she moved or breathed and she was pretty sure that ANBU had broken something when he'd stepped on her, or sprang, either way it was a hindrance.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Karin stared at the darkness of the storage temple, and then at the demonic looking mask on the wall and shivered. Her eyes filled with tears and she took off her glasses in order to rub them in an attempt to stop any from falling.

She didn't know what to do. Her first thought was to go back and help her sister, but she had no chance of ever defeating a trained ninja, yet at least. Sachi trained her after their parents but Karin didn't learn as quickly as Sachi could.

Next she decided she could either stay where she was and wait, or she could get help. Konoha was close by, but it was already getting late. She didn't even know exactly where Konoha was! She supposed she could use her sensory to find the closest gathering of ninja.

"Cub, are you alright!" Seina's frantic voice interrupted her thoughts and Karin was extremely relieved to see the panther.

"I'm fine," she said. "We've got to do something though, Seina! We have to help Aneki!"

Seina looked at Karin with thoughtful eyes. She understood Karin's worry, she too was worried. She'd seen just how many ninja Sachi was against. Her only advantage was that they seemed to underestimate her.

They didn't appear to know much about her abilities, but other than the ability to heal, use the Uzumaki Adamantine Sealing Chains and sensory skill, even Konoha didn't know what to expect as far as ninjutsu, taijutsu, or any other skill went. The same could be said about the ninja attacking them though, Sachi had no idea their skill-set either.

Seina had a feeling whatever was going on had to do with Konoha, maybe not the Hokage himself, but Konoha was the only place they'd revealed themselves to. Seina decided then, that she needed to get Sachi help. Even if it meant taking the chance of trusting Konoha despite her suspicions.

"Fine, but when Sachi-hime finds out don't blame me if she gets upset," Seina said, sniffing proudly before lowering herself to the ground. "Get on my back, I'll get us to Konoha in no time."

Karin grinned, and scurried onto the panthers back. In seconds the two were flying through the forest headed towards Konohagakure, the moon high in the sky. Karin couldn't get a good look at anything, and her hair though short at only shoulder length flew around wildly, hitting her in the face obscuring her view even more.

Seina was one of the fastest panthers in her clan, it was her claim to fame she supposed. Seina was very proud of her speed as well. What would usually take longer, only took five minutes before the gates of Konoha came into view.

At the gate were two chūnin – at least she assumed they were. They wore flak jackets that reminded Karin a little of the light blue one her parents kept in their possession even after Uzushio's fall. One appeared to be asleep, but was quickly woken up by his partner.

Said boy – he hardly looked much older than her sister – came to stand in their way and Seina was forced to slow down and come to a stop just outside the village.

"State your name and business here," the chūnin said.

"You've gotta let me in! My sister needs help! I have to see your Hokage!" Karin was practically yelling, her eyes wide and pleading, and speaking so quickly she wasn't even sure exactly what she said.

"Wow, hold up kid. We can't just let you into the village..." the second chūnin, a boy with dark hair and eyes, same the the first.

Seina growled, eyes narrowed dangerously. They told both chūnin one thing, the two were entering the village and they would see the Hokage.

"My ward here is Uzumaki Karin, my summoner is Uzumaki Sachi. The Hokage will know who I speak of, as will Uchiha Shisui. I do not care which we see, but you will bring us to either your Hokage or Uchiha Shisui." The 'or else' was left unspoken but both chūnin got the hint.

With a sigh the first nodded and waved them inside the village. He told the others to stand guard while he took them to the Hokage.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Sachi stood to her feet a few minutes later, Hikage and Amatsuki having finished piling the bodies together several seconds prior.

As she tried to figure out her best course of action, her first thought being to burn the bodies, she sensed a very familiar set of chakra signatures. Two felt like ANBU who she'd met after the Uchiha Massacre, and the last was more recognizable as Shisui. Her eyes widened and she turned in time to see them bursting into the clearing.

The three of them came to a stop. The two ANBU were Dog and another with longish brown hair – she didn't exactly know which mask his was, the masks the ANBU wore was sometimes hard to distinguish with an animal. The ANBU was male though.

Dog made some hand-signs and the other went to inspect the bodies, Hikage and Amatsuki had already returned to the home of the panthers prior to their arrival.

"Sachi, are you alright?" Shisui asked, scanning her for any injuries and Sachi smiled.

"I'm fine. I already healed myself," she said. "Why are you here... how..."

"Your summon and sister arrived in the village and told us what had happened," Dog said, turning his attention to the redhead. "Hokage-sama sent us out soon after. You're sister has a very good memory to be able to direct us here without actually leading us here. Your summon, Seina, she decided to stay back with your sister."

"Karin came to Konoha?" she asked, surprised by the revelations and then snorted. "I should have known she wouldn't stay at the temple until I got there."

"What happened?" Shisui asked, looking around at the area. There weren't much evidence of ninjutsu having been used, but there were signs of a battle. The bodies looked to have been through a lot, and he was impressed Sachi had handled at least six ninja on her own.

"Karin and I have been staying in a cave not far from here. We come here to have dinner, we'd just finished when Seina let me know we were being watched. Usually I have a genjutsu around the area, but they were able to see through it..."

"It's easy to see why," the brown haired ANBU said, coming up to them. "One of the bodies is a Hyūga. Captain, it's definitely Root. Danzō must have gotten word of Sachi-san somehow."

"Danzō," Sachi echoed, a look of recognition on her face. "They mentioned him, I assume they worked for him."

Shisui's eyes flashed, not liking that the old war-hawk had gone after his friend, and he did consider Sachi his friend. Despite how little time they'd spent together, and how little they knew about each other. It had only been a week and a half, and he knew letting Danzō believe he'd won anything was a bad idea.

He'd told the Hokage they should strike fast, before Danzō got to arrogant believing he got away with anything, but Sarutobi believed they needed more time to put a case together. The one thing Shisui couldn't completely get behind with the Hokage was his lack of action when it was most needed. His belief that the village was a democracy when it was actually meant to be a dictatorship.

Though he agreed that a kind leader was what was needed, there was a time for second chances and a time for taking care of threats to the village.

Even without a complete case against Danzō the fact Shisui had told him everything he knew of Danzō's activities, especially how the man had taken his eye and placed the village in danger by not allowing him to finish his mission, should have been enough for him to be executed for treason.

"I take it he isn't good news," Sachi said, seeing the fleeting anger pass through Shisui.

"No, he's not," Shisui said. "Dog take care of the bodies, bring a few back for further evidence against Danzō. Whatever that warmonger is trying to do, it ends now."

Dog nodded, the silver-gray haired man having not seen Shisui like this before. Determined, angry, the emotions were rather fleeting and he didn't bother trying to read them all. He simply knew there was no point in arguing.

Being protective of his friends was just apart of Shisui's personality, and he knew enough to know that even if they didn't know each other well, Sachi had saved Shisui's life and the lives of many children in his clan.

"Is Karin alright?" Sachi asked as they headed for the Leaf Village.

She was a bit concerned with Karin in Konoha, now that she knew for sure the ninja who attacked them were Konoha ninja. She was smart enough to realize they didn't answer to the Hokage, just as this Danzō person seemed not to. She doubted the Hokage had anything to do with this if the fact he sent backup was any indicator.

In the end her decision was made; She'd put her trust in Shisui not to lead her or Karin into danger. She would give Konoha the benefit of the doubt until she got the full story.

"She's fine. I had Seina take her to my place and set her up in a room," Shisui said. "You can stay the night and figure out what to do tomorrow."

Sachi smiled. "Thank you. That offer the Hokage gave me, it's still open right?"

"Of course," he answered, feeling a bit hopeful which surprised him. He didn't normally form bonds so quickly.

"Good."

That was the end of the conversation, and the two quickly caught up with the two ANBU running ahead of them.


	5. Bittersweet Sonata

**AN: So, first things first. I want to thank everyone for reviewing, I am really happy with how well this story is being received. I hope it continues to be liked, so here is the next chapter. Enjoy!**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Meddling In Fate. **

**Chapter 5: Bittersweet Sonata. **

Sachi and Karin hadn't slept in a real bed in a long time. It was easily the best sleep either girl had in years. Waking up in an unknown place though had startled them both, until the nights events returned to them.

Karin had already fallen asleep by the time Shisui brought Sachi back to the apartment he stayed in with Sasuke – the other Uchiha children staying in the apartments next to his so he could keep an eye on them. It was temporary until the Uchiha district could be cleaned up and renovated.

Upon seeing her sister whole and alive, Karin tackled the older redhead into a hug.

"Nee-chan, you're okay!" Karin exclaimed. "I was so worried!"

Sachi's eyes softened and she returned the hug, rubbing soothing circles into Karin's back.

"It's alright, Karin-chan," Sachi muttered. "I'm fine now."

Karin raised her head from where she'd buried it and sniffled once before smiling. She usually didn't react like this, but in the two years since their parents died they had never been attacked like this. Not by such high ranking ninja. Bandits were usually the worst of their threats, they were very careful to stay away from ninja.

"Come on, Imouto. We should get up and greet our host," Sachi stated, and Karin nodded and hopped off the bed.

"Where will we go after today, Sachi?"

"We'll be staying in Konoha. For now Shisui has offered us this room until I can bring in some money and get us a place to live," she answered her sister, who blinked owlishly behind her glasses.

"That's very kind of him. He's the one you saved, the reason it took you so long to come home?" she asked, and Sachi pouted.

"You're still sour about that, huh?"

Karin '_hmph'd'_ and Sachi chuckled as they exited the room. Sliding the door shut behind her, Sachi made her way to the kitchen on memory alone. It wasn't the hard, there were only three bedrooms, a bathroom, a small living area and kitchen in the apartment from what Shisui had briefly showed her last night.

In the kitchen were Shisui, and a small army of children. Sachi smiled at the chaotic scene, while Karin gawked wildly. She'd never seen anything like it. Some of the kids were younger than Karin, a few older.

Some were rowdy, impatient and in some cases downright annoyed or depressed. There were two babies, hardly over a year old, maybe nearing two, one throwing baby food randomly, and at the center was an exasperated Shisui. Trying to make some form of food for everyone.

"Shisui, Shisui... can we have ice cream?" a small raven haired girl asked, bouncing in her chair. She couldn't be more than three. Obviously too young to truly take in what had happened, most were.

"Mochi!" another cried.

"No Ayano, Haru," Shisui said, shaking his head as he placed eggs on their plates. "Haru, please sit down."

A boy around four was running around him, the one who had asked for Mochi. Sachi couldn't help but laugh at what she was seeing in front of her, before placing her fingers at her mouth and blowing. The loud high pitched whistle put a stop to the noise and movement instantly.

Shisui's downtrodden face seemed to light up with relief at seeing her. Maybe he thought she would know how to handle kids, seeing as she took care of Karin. She could see Shisui had been quickly loosing his patience, and it was only thanks to his ANBU training he even kept it as long as he had.

"You're up," he said. "Great, uh I would offer you a seat but as you can see... it's a bit packed in here."

Sachi nodded, and looked at her sister only to see the redhead had locked her gaze onto one of the older boys sitting at the table. She recognized the boy as Sasuke, and she bit the inside of her cheek at the almost hollow looking black eyes that stared at them in barely there confusion.

His scowl was deep set, and he looked more than a little annoyed by his extended family – most probably weren't even directly related to him for generations if at all the clan had been that large. They were still his clan though, so Sasuke put up with them.

For some reason Sasuke thought he had seen the older of the two redheads somewhere before. It was blurry at best, but it was hard to shake the feeling at the oddly bright shade of dark red hair.

He was a little weirded out by the shorter girl, who had an even odder hair style then the older one, hers was spikier-messier on one side but was perfectly straight on the other.

She was beginning to remind him painfully of those girls at the Academy who followed him around, so he glared hatefully at the girl, making her flinch back and then return his glare with equally hateful bright red eyes.

"Who are you?" he asked, his voice lacking so much emotion Sachi felt her breath hitch.

She remembered a time, a life time ago, when her voice had sounded so similar. When living with the Dursley's got so bad she could just scream, when Cedric died in front of her, when Sirius died... the first few weeks after the war.

Sasuke was truly the most affected by the massacre. But then again he was the oldest except for two others who looked nearly as depressed. Other than Shisui, Sasuke had no close family left, and Sachi doubted he considered Itachi much more than the person to massacre the clan.

"Ah, I thought I already told you Sasuke," Shisui began, chuckling nervously. "These are Uzumaki Sachi and her younger sister, Uzumaki Karin. They'll be staying with us until they can get a place to stay of their own."

Sasuke wondered where he'd heard that surname before.

"Red-san!"

Sachi gasped as a small body collided with her waist, and she looked down to see one of the smaller children had tackled her in a hug. Large black eyes, common among the clan, and wavy short black hair – also common.

All the children had black eyes, but not all of them had black hair. A few had shades of dark brown, or even duller medium brown or black.

Slowly she recognized the girl as the one who had hugged Shisui the night of the Massacre, though she didn't have a name for the girl.

"Hi," Sachi said, awkwardly.

"Umeko, you realize she doesn't know who you are," a boy about six said, rolling his eyes. She realized this was the boy who thanked her for saving them that night. Unlike most his hair was a shade of dark brown.

"I'm sorry, I don't know any of your names, but I do remember most of you," she said with a smile.

"You've met her before?" Sasuke asked.

"She's the one who saved us that night," an older girl with dull medium brown hair said, her black eyes sad. She was easily the eldest at eleven years old.

Sasuke's eyes widened and he seemed to process this before his eyes narrowed into a glare. His fist gripping the blue fabric of his shirt.

Standing he snapped. "Why..." the words were so softly snarled it was uncertain what he said, but just the one word was enough for both Shisui and Sachi to know what he meant.

Why then were they the only ones saved? If both Shisui and Sachi were there why were only a dozen children saved? The answers weren't something either could truthfully give.

He stormed out of the room, and they heard the front door slamming shut. The children all looked downtrodden by his absence, and she realized that while there were at least two or three a little older than Sasuke they were all looking at the clan heir for some sort of guidance.

It was Karin who broke the silence.

"What a jerk."

**.**

**.**

**.**

He had never felt so old. He'd thought the Kyūbi attack was bad, but this was turning out to be an even bigger nightmare.

The Uchiha massacre had been harrowing.

He had the council breathing down his neck, Shisui was just lucky there were so many surviving Uchiha with the potential of awakening the Sharingan, otherwise the council would be breathing down his neck to find a wife and populate the clan once again.

Added onto the political nightmare the massacre had caused, he had Danzō to build a case against and his regular duties as Hokage. Hiruzen had been hoping things would calm down once Shisui was officially made clan head, until Sasuke was old enough and married. Shisui had more right to the title than even Sasuke did if one wanted to be technical.

If Kagami hadn't been the kind of man he was and given the clan head title to his cousin, Mikoto's father, than Shisui would have been the clan heir instead of Itachi or Sasuke. Many seemed to over look the fact Shisui was the eldest direct descendant of Uchiha Madara (with Obito's death in the third war).

Kagami's father was the eldest son of Uchiha Madara.

Mikoto was descended from the younger son of Madara, which usually would have made her clan head, but the Uchiha elders were a bit on the traditional side. This meant when Mikoto married her husband would for all intent and purposes become clan head.

It was a commonly forgotten fact that Fugaku, though distantly related to Mikoto, was descended from Madara's line as well; through one of Madara's brothers. Not Izuna, but one of the older ones. Hiruzen could never remember which one so it probably wasn't important.

Shisui much like Kagami had no desire to be clan head, but recognized he was the only one who could take the position for now. He had to take care of the surviving members of his clan. Things had calmed down for a few days, but it was merely the calm before the storm it appeared.

He didn't know how Danzō had found out about Sachi and the girls younger sister, but the little red headed girl who could only be the sister of Uzumaki Sachi was sure of every word she told him.

Danzō had truly done it now, and both Sachi (who had the infamous Uzumaki temper) and Shisui intended to bury him. Metaphorically and literally.

It was the end of the line for his old friend.

When they had returned to the village, Hiruzen had talked to Kakashi, Tenzō, Shisui and Sachi before dismissing the two ANBU and talking to Shisui and Sachi privately about what to do concerning Danzō.

Both were under the firm belief he had to be removed, like all threats to the village and the Hokage were. Maybe a part of it was Shisui still held a grudge for Danzō's part in the massacre of his clan, even though Shisui knew it was coming long before Danzō interfered in their plans for peace.

Despite Shisui's peaceful nature and lack of the usual Uchiha arrogance, he was still a shinobi. A former ANBU (as he'd retired from ANBU not longer after his sudden return to life), and an Uchiha.

There were none better at holding onto a grudge than an Uchiha. Some said the Uzumaki were just as bad, and knowing Kushina as he had he had no doubts of that; Sachi certainly had a reason to want Danzō out of the way.

Hiruzen would admit he was hesitant to send his old friend and comrade to death. Danzō had once been his friend and rival, a teammate during certain missions in the second war. Danzō hadn't always been the way he was now, the turning point had been the death of the Nidaime Hokage.

Danzō had nearly idolized the man, when Tobirama made Hiruzen his successor there had been a change in Danzō. At first it was small, barely noticeable. Making Danzō one of his advisors had been a way to let his friend know he wasn't forgotten despite not being chosen as Sandaime Hokage.

Maybe, looking back on it, it was more like adding insult to injury.

As time went by Danzō grew to resent the way Hiruzen ruled, with diplomacy more so than power or an iron fist. While Tobirama had been a just Hokage he also hadn't been a push over.

In Danzō's own words, Tobirama would have never given into Kumo's demands for a Hyūga in reparations for their dead ambassador who had been caught trying to kidnap the Hyūga heiress.

Hiruzen knew it was the truth, but Konoha just wasn't up to another war so soon after the Kyūbi attack. So he'd swallowed his own pride and moral, allowing Kumo their demands. The fact Hizashi had been sent in place of Hiashi was unfortunate, sad, but necessary to keep the Byakugan from another villages hands.

He'd always done what had to be done. For the sake of the village, the children and the will of fire. Hiruzen knew a lot of what Danzō had done in the shadows over the decades, but he was surprised at the details Shisui had to share.

He was taken aback when the boy had told him how Danzō had stolen his eye, in order to gain the power of his Mangekyō Sharingan – a terrifying notion. He knew what Shisui's eyes could do and he barely trusted the boy himself with such power.

He was more surprised that Danzō had gone so far for power, even if he believed it in Konoha's best interest. Logically Hiruzen knew Sachi and Shisui were right. He'd over looked Danzō not disbanding the Foundation when he was told.

His actions against the Uchiha, the fact he knew he had to do something about the eye he'd taken from Shisui, and now this... he was all out of chances to give.

By noon the day after his recovery team returned with Uzumaki Sachi and bodies of the Root found at the scene, everything was prepared.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Hiruzen looked up with a small smile when there was a few short knocks, and then the door opened to show a bandaged man. Knowing now what he did the bandages around his eye made more sense, Hiruzen realized grimly.

Danzō's face betrayed no emotion. Likewise Hiruzen kept his emotions schooled, allowing not a hint of betrayal to appear.

"You wanted to see me, Hiruzen?"

"Danzō, have a seat my friend," he said, and Danzō sat down across from the Hokage.

The table was set up with little cakes and tea. It was odd, but not unusual for a meeting like this to occur between the advisors and Hokage. Usually the other two were here as well, but Danzō saw no threat in Hiruzen's behavior.

"What is this about?" he asked, hesitantly accepting the tea, but rejecting any of the cakes.

He discreetly inspected the tea for poisons, though this was more out of habit than belief in Hiruzen's ability to do so. He could see no color difference from normal green tea, nor did the smell seem off. Sipping the tea he was satisfied to find the taste was not off from what one expected of green tea.

"I was going through the recent batch of graduates, and noticed just how each had done in the Academy," Hiruzen began, sipping his own tea. "I couldn't help but notice how the Academy standards had changed since the older generation. Given the changes that tend to occur during wartime aside, the standards have seemed to drop since the end of the third war."

Danzō raised an brow, but nodded. He too had noticed this, but when he bothered to bring it up it was simply brushed aside. Why Hiruzen allowed the civilians as much power as he did was beyond him.

The council had been formed by Hashirama to appease the civilians years after Konoha was founded. It was a simple fact that despite being a mainly military village, they had needed the civilians to completely become the Konoha of today.

Most shinobi did not know anything of being merchants or farming, and many attempts had floundered in the first year of Konoha's birth and so they brought in civilians to give birth to the shops, merchant stands, and agricultural success they had today.

After a few years the civilians decided they wanted in on the political power of Konoha, and with the threat of loosing resources Hashirama had formed the civilian council. It was small at first, and they had very little power.

The only power they had was over civilian matters, and over time it had grown from little power to them having a say in what the Shinobi Academy and the Civilian Academy taught.

The latter being of Hiruzen's doing. Usually the curriculum fell to Hiruzen, the elders, and Nara Shikaku, but after the third war there was much to do. Then with the Kyūbi attack only a few years after the war Hiruzen had finally given into pressure and the rest was history.

The Academy of today was little more than what the civilian side thought the Shinobi Academy should teach. Even the history books had been replaced and heavily edited to make it seem more glorious to the civilian raised children.

"I've been trying to tell you this for a while now, Hiruzen," Danzō said. "The death rate of our shinobi has gone up since the end of the third war, at least as far as genin and chūnin go. Those of the older generation have been holding their own well, most are still alive; Sarutobi Asuma, Hatake Kakashi, Yūhi Kurenai... etc."

"Yes, I apologize for not looking into this sooner my old friend," Hiruzen said, and he was being completely honest. "I actually have Shikaku looking over the current curriculum now, I wished to get his opinion before our meeting."

"And? How did that turn out?"

"Not so good. I made a mistake allowing the civilians to have as much to do with the Shinobi Academy as I did. I should have spread the work load out more to allow us to work with it more. In the last few years graduation has fallen to below average, most genin to graduate do not make it to chūnin ranking anymore. Some drop out all together, and there has been a lack of kunoichi graduating or surviving past their genin rank. Most are civilian raised."

"It is a concern. What do you wish me to do?" Danzō asked, placing his empty cup down.

"Hm, not much I'm afraid. Mostly I just wished to discuss this with you, get your input. Also to announce some other occurrences." He began his tale. "Not long ago I met a young girl, she's a bit of a nomad with her sister."

"Oh?" he asked.

"She's actually the one who saved Uchiha Shisui."

Hiruzen watched Danzō's reaction carefully.

"Uzumaki Sachi, she was recently attacked by unknown assailants. Most likely ninja from another village wishing to take the power of two full blooded Uzumaki females for themselves. She was able to escape, thankfully, and has decided to take my offer of joining the village. I plan to have her skills assessed later in the week."

"Two Uzumaki, that is quite rare these days," Danzō admitted, schooling his features.

Inside he was a bundle of suspicion and anger at the failure of his ninja to obtain two female who couldn't have been trained that well considering their ages. The older was only sixteen from his sources, the younger couldn't be older than the Uchiha heir himself.

Either the girl had been well trained by her parents since a very young age, or she was a prodigy herself. Maybe both. He was rather impressed, she had defeated his ninja with minimal wounds.

Though from Uchiha Shisui's return he knew she must be a very powerful medic, maybe more so than even Tsunade-hime if she could regrow the boys missing eye. He sighed silently, he'd underestimated the girls abilities assuming her to be a medic first and foremost. He wouldn't make that mistake again.

Danzō went to speak, but found his mouth hard to move, his hand twitched, but seemed to refuse to listen to his demands. Looking from his hands to his friend who was wearing a rather passive but grim expression his vision began to blur ever so slightly before righting itself.

"W-w-what..." he tried to get out, but found it harder to speak than it was to move his mouth.

Hiruzen sighed. "I am sorry Danzō, but your actions have forced my hand."

There was a shimmer in the air and on either side two figures came into view. He hadn't even noticed them hiding, and he didn't recognize whatever jutsu was used. It wasn't any he'd seen, but looked similar to the Meisaigakure no Jutsu (Hiding with Camouflage Technique).

The girl was average height, built as many kunoichi were, with long nearly straight red hair, and bright emerald green eyes. A peculiar lightning shaped birthmark on her forehead. The boy he recognized easily as Uchiha Shisui, his Sharingan activated and a steely resolve present in them.

He snorted. "I... see."

"You really didn't think I hadn't told Hokage-sama everything, did you Danzō-sama?" Shisui asked neutrally. "I thought the Root you had following me would have noticed something by now."

"So.. you'd... noticed." Speaking was becoming easier, but his body still felt heavy and useless. His chakra was also lower than it should be.

"Hn."

"Sachi, please begin so we may be done with this," Hiruzen ordered, not wanting to prolong this anymore than he had to.

Sachi nodded and walked over to kneel down beside the sitting elder. She reached into her right hip pouch and pulled out a scroll. Smearing blood on it she opened the scroll with little hesitance and rolled it out beside her.

Inside were ink wells, brushes, paper tags. The very basics for any fūinjutsu beginner, but he knew from how she began handling the tools she was far from a beginner.

"What are you doing, girl?" he asked, and the redhead spared him a quick glance.

"Nothing your ANBU didn't try to do to me," she said, a small smirk on the corner of her mouth.

"And the tea?" he asked as he tried to regain motor functions beyond speaking.

"A simple herbal mixture. Oder-less, tasteless, and it doesn't change the color of liquid or food it's added to," she said. "It's meant to slow down motor skills slowly, until you loose the ability to move. A paralytic, but it doesn't last long. The fact you can talk again means it's already leaving your system. It was only meant to leave you unable to move so I could place the seals."

"Impressive, you couldn't have had more than the last twelve or so hours to craft this plan," he muttered, and Sachi finished the first set of skills which would leave him without the ability to move at all once the herbal mixture wore off.

While placing them on his chest she made sure to check for existing seals. What she found she slowly and carefully went about disabling to the best of her ability. Moving his bandages aside she began the last array of seals around his eye, a fail safe of sorts until she could remove the eye.

Danzō sighed.

"Well played Hiruzen," he said.

Shisui and Sachi both looked up along with the Hokage when ANBU dropped into the room.

"Keep working, Sachi," Shisui said, attacking the ninja closest to him.

The Hokage stood, called out orders to his own ANBU standing guard outside and engaged those who got too close to Sachi and Danzō, proving that he had not simply been sitting behind a desk since becoming Hokage.

Sachi unsealed another scroll which she laid next to the first, revealing medical supplies. Seeing the need to finish quickly she went straight into removing the eye. As she worked she kept her senses open.

The Hokage's ANBU, Shisui, and the Hokage himself proved more than enough to take care of Danzō's ninja, yet one or two did get passed them.

With a sigh she allowed her chains to extend from her back, two of which impaled the two ninja coming up behind her with ninjatō's. She began pulling out the safely removed eye when Danzō's had grabbed her wrist.

Her eyes widened, and she noticed the black seals appearing on his chest. It only took her a second to realize they were seals of negation. They were placed in hidden areas and were very hard to detect, they were used to deactivate seals such as the one she'd placed on him.

"When..." she began, but her wrist was wrenched back and her head slammed into the table before she could finish.

"A genjutsu when my ANBU arrived, I was rather surprised none of you had noticed," Danzō said, standing up almost stiffly.

She groaned, lifting her head from the table and turning her blurring vision to the man. Her chains snaked along the floor and twisted up towards Danzō who avoided them only to be faced with the Hokage's Bo-staff.

The air was forced from his lungs by the staff digging into his gut, then his chest and finally heading for his throat. He ducked under it. From his blind side he felt searing pain when his bandaged arm was nearly taken off by Shisui's ninjatō.

The bandages fell away and showed them what they hadn't noticed. Sachi had been placing seals on his chest, and one around his eye, but she'd felt no need to remove the bandages on his arm to do so.

It was a mistake it seemed. His arm was rather grotesque, but looked like something rather freshly done. What was most disgusting were the handful of Sharingan eyes implanted on it.

Not wasting a moment Sachi sent her chains out once more and wrapped them around the elder. He was already sloppy from the herbal mixture not completely being gone, and without Shisui's eye he had a rather large blind spot he wasn't completely used to having again.

"Hokage-sama," An ANBU began, checking around suspiciously for anymore Root. "Is everyone alright?"

Sachi reached up to the small cut on her hairline, and wiped the blood away. Letting her hand linger at the cut she quickly healed it to avoid any distractions, and turned her attention back to Danzō.

"I'm fine," the Sandaime said, and Shisui and Sachi echoed the same. "Take the bodies to the morgue, we can deal with this from here."

The ANBU nodded, and began gathering the Root ANBU bodies into scrolls before they left.

"Shisui cut off his arm, we can't let him have any advantages," Hiruzen said, and the raven haired boy nodded. The arm was severed, and Danzō hissed at loss.

Despite all his tricks, the Uzumaki chakra chains were something even he couldn't escape as he was now. Considering they were powerful enough to subdue Bijū they may be inescapable by anyone.

"We should hurry, I can't hold my chains forever," Sachi said.

"Of course. We need him to talk. Shisui can you use your genjutsu on him?" Hiruzen asked.

"I don't know. I've used it once already, commonly it takes up to a decade to be usable again."

Sachi frowned but a possibility came to her.

She asked, "With your original eyes?" He nodded. "While the ones you have now are identical, the fact they are not your original ones may trick them into believing the ten years is already up. It's just an idea, but it's worth a shot."

Shisui nodded, activated his Sharingan and though Danzō did try to avoid it his gaze locked onto Danzō's remaining eye.

"_**Kotoamatsukami.**_"

**.**

**.**

**.**

Hiruzen was disturbed by just how much Danzō had gotten passed him in the last two decades. Under Shisui's Kotoamatsukami he spilled any secret they asked him to.

He admitted rather passively his involvement with Orochimaru, how long he'd known of Orochimaru's experiments, and his part in certain areas during the third war. He'd admitted to desecrating graves to get genetic material with Orochimaru's aid.

How he had been working to add the Shodaime's cells to his own, so his stolen eye would not need quite as long to recharge between each use of Kotoamatsukami. There were many admissions by Danzō, so much so that the man dug his own grave.

Getting the location of the foundation was just as easy, and the files Danzō kept painted a picture of a man who thought what he was doing was truly for the greater good. The good of Konoha, a place he loved, a place he wished to build in his own image.

Unfortunately he'd long since lost sight of right and wrong, and buried his own humanity so far it was basically erased. He was the epitome of the darkness of shinobi, and it would be his downfall. Still, Danzō was a respected man within Konoha, if not considered a bit overbearing and a warmonger. Lacking the emotions that kept shinobi human despite their job.

There was just too much to out Danzō for. It would risk the truth of the Uchiha massacre coming to light, not to mention it may make the civilians question if the shinobi system really had their best interest and protection in mind.

So a public execution or even a trial was not worth the risk. Instead it would be private, just the elders and clan heads. It would happen quickly, by the end of the day in fact to make sure none of Danzō's Root got any ideas to rescue the man.

His death had to be made to look like a natural occurrence. Danzō was not a young man anymore, and he was considered a bit frail from his injuries. Something like heart failure would not be questioned. Sachi was the one who came up with the idea to simulate a heart attack.

Until then Danzō was taken to a secure holding cell.

"You can do this?" Hiruzen asked. "In such a way it can't be traced back to you?"

Sachi nodded, pulling a few glass tubes with herbs inside from her left hip pouch. She took the mortar from the scroll with her more civilian medical supplies – such as scalpels and the like.

"Yeah, my mother was a herbal mistress. She taught me everything she knew, and over the years I became good enough to create my own mixtures."

True enough, it was actually a potion she'd created in her first life. It was used to execute prisoners in Azkaban more humanely than the Dementors kiss. It was made from primarily mundane ingredients. Everything Muggles would have heard of, like nightshade for example.

"It'll take at least twenty-four hours to take effect but it'll work," Sachi said. "Uh, do you have some sort of open flame? A burner of some sort?"

Hiruzen nodded, and retrieved a portable device that would hold one of the test-like tubes over a open flame. It was similar enough to a Bunsen burner, Sachi thought, and probably something the Medical corps worked with.

Crushing the herbs together in the stone bowl, and then adding them periodically when it was needed she finally took it off the heat, stirred the now slightly cloudy but otherwise clear liquid before adding the last herb, and putting a stopper on the tube.

"That's it?" Shisui asked, having never quite seen it done like that before. He had assumed it would take longer than ten minutes.

"Yeah. Like I said it's very simple to put together, though there are a few mixtures I know that take a lot longer. Most mixtures don't require a heat source to create, but there are a handful I know that are best done over an open flame."

Again it was true, but because of the lack of magic and many of the magical ingredients which were needed for the majority of potions there weren't many.

Most of her work with herbs now were mixtures taught to her by her mother, and any kunoichi with a skill for poisons and the like might recognize. Depending on regions though and the style taught every kunoichi had different styles of herbal mixtures.

"Will it show up in an autopsy or testing?" Hiruzen asked.

"No," Sachi said. "It's completely undetectable. By the time the heart fails any trace will have already left the body."

"Good. Shisui take this to Mitarashi Anko to place it in something to give to Danzō. I have a few more things to talk to Sachi about," he said.

Shisui nodded, shared one last look with Sachi who gave him the vial of poison, and left.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Hokage-sama, I have a few questions I wish to ask as well," Sachi said.

"Of course, that's understandable," he said, and motioned towards the door. "Lets head to my office. I believe this meeting room needs to be cleaned before it's used again."

Indeed it did need cleaned. After the fight between the few Root Danzō had either planted within the ANBU or brought with him, there were broken walls, furniture, and blood on the floor. They left the meeting room and relocated to the Hokage's office soon after.

Sachi chose to stand as the Hokage sat at his desk.

"Now, first I believe we should settle the matter of your placement among the ranks."

Sachi nodded. She had already confirmed the night before that she'd planned to be a ninja and not a civilian. Though she did not enjoy some aspects of the ninja life, she was the type of person that a civilian lifestyle was just too mundane. Chances were also good Karin would be joining the Academy soon.

"How do you think your skills stand?" Hiruzen asked.

"To be completely honest I'm not sure. My parents taught me everything I know and they were jōnin before Uzushio fell," she began. "I am the most skilled in fūinjutsu, though I am still working on using it in battle. I also still have a ways to go before I can claim to be a master of seals. I have large chakra reserves like most Uzumaki, and my control is pretty good. I am very good at using the Uzumaki Kongō Fūsa (Adamantine Sealing Chains), and my special chakra ability. My affinities are fire and wind, though I do know one lightning based jutsu – Raiton: Kage Bunshin (Lightning Release: Shadow Clone), and one or two earth jutsu."

Sachi took a breath before she continued.

"I've developed a technique were I combine careful control of my fire chakra and wind chakra to my taijutsu, but it does need work. Commonly I end up with slight burns or abrasions from using it, which is one reason I wear gloves. My taijutsu is one of my better skills, and of course I can use shuriken and kunai, along with a tantō, but I don't have much desire to further my kenjutsu as I'm not very good at it. I have skill with herbal mixtures as you've seen, and I know some medical ninjutsu. Though I know how to dispel genjutsu I am not very good at using it myself."

The Sandaime was very impressed. Sachi's parents had taught their daughter well, and to create a technique as she said she had... not many her age could boast that. She had more skill in diverse areas than he'd expected. He would have to see it for himself though before he could give her a ranking.

"I see, knowing this I'd probably place you as high chūnin or even jōnin level, but I want to have you fight some of my ninja to make a final decision."

"Understood," she stated. "Hokage-sama about my living arrangements. Shisui has kindly offered us his guest bedroom but I don't want to be a bother to him. He already has so much to focus on. I'd like to get a job or even start any sort of mission you can give me as soon as possible so I can afford a place for Karin and I."

"There is no need to worry. Mito-sama set up an Uzumaki fund of sorts that any Uzumaki could draw from upon arrival until they settle in. You can begin searching for a place. Considering the importance of the Uzumaki I believe it would be best to build a small compound for the clan. If you wish though you may go simpler and just get an apartment. As for getting a job until you can begin taking missions, that is up to you."

"Thank you, for now we will continue staying with Shisui while I decide what to do about that." Sachi tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "There is something else. My father, Uzumaki Jin, had a cousin who was brought to Konoha when she was a child. Uzumaki Kushina. He became clan heir after she left, and I wanted to know if she's still here?"

Hiruzen's eyes widened. He had already assumed that like Kushina, Sachi and Karin were from the main branch of the Uzumaki clan. He had not however thought them to be so closely related to Kushina and as a result, Naruto.

This was good news. It gave Sachi even more right to become the Uzumaki clan head until Naruto was old enough, and for her to become his legal guardian. Should she decide to, he was pretty sure she would given what he'd seen of her personality already.

"I did know Kushina, unfortunately she passed away the night of the Kyūbi attack."

Sachi froze, taking a sharp breath before she sighed seconds later. Hiruzen looked on sadly at the girls dashed hopes.

Standing from his chair, Hiruzen said, "Follow me, Sachi. There is someone I wish to show you."

She blinked owlishly but did follow close behind the aging leader.

"Who?" she asked.

He smiled. "You'll see."


	6. Uzumaki

**AN: I want to thank everyone for reviewing before I begin, and I apologize it's been as long as it has. In any case, here is the next chapter. I will be going back over it to fix any mistakes so please forgive any typos or other errors. Otherwise enjoy!**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Meddling In Fate. **

**Chapter 6: Uzumaki. **

The Sandaime led her to the front of the Academy where parents were arriving to pick up their children. There were a few who seemed surprised to see the Hokage and a strange yet pretty foreign girl there.

"Is this what you wanted to show me?" Sachi inquired, looking at the children making their way out of the building. The Sandaime chuckled, though it sounded half-hearted and Sachi had to recall that the man had just sentenced an old friend to death not long ago.

Being Hokage sounded rather glamorous on the outside, but if the choices she'd witnessed being made by said man said anything Sachi wondered if it was at all a worthwhile job. That was the difference, Sachi realized. The Hokage didn't just protect the people of the village, the Hokage also had to make the tough choices. Sometimes the council didn't make it any easier.

When she had been head of the Auror department she wasn't necessarily sending her fellow Aurors out into kill or be killed situations all the time. They also knew what to expect when it came to magic when used in battle.

She didn't have as much pressure on her. Especially not when she'd been Headmistress of Hogwarts. Though overlooking a school full of children between the ages of eleven and nineteen wasn't as easy as her predecessors had made it look.

"Not so much this..." he trailed off, before pointing out one of the children. "... but that. The young one with blond hair, blue eyes, and whisker marks."

It took her only a second to zero in on the boy he pointed out. She was struck by how sad he looked as he left, while usually children were exited to leave school each day. He was smaller than most his age, but did not look underfed or sickly.

He had spiky scruffy blond hair, brighter than any shade of blond she'd seen in recent memory, and eyes bluer than the sky even though they seemed duller in his depressed state. His most unique trait were the whisker-like marks, three on each cheek.

She figured they were either clan markings or birth marks. There was something familiar about him. It wasn't just the loneliness in his eyes. The Hokage and Sachi walked closer to the boy, now sitting on a lone swing. They kept a distance from others picking up their kids as they did, as to not be overheard or stopped by particularly chatty or nosy parents.

"His name is Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto, he would be your second cousin I believe."

They came to a stop, and Sachi's head jerked to the side to stare at the older man with wide eyes. Then she turned her gaze back to the boy, Naruto. At first glance he didn't look all that much like an Uzumaki.

His skin was a shade or two darker than was common amongst the clan, a light tan or sun-kissed tone. His hair brighter than even her pale yellow coat. She could see the slightly rounded features though that were common for an Uzumaki. The eye shape which matched that of her father's cousin and were similar to that of Uzumaki Jin as well. She assumed he took a little more after his father, but there were plenty of signs that marked him for an Uzumaki if one observed him closely.

"Kushina had a son?" she muttered, the words coming out more like a statement than a question. "But what of the father?"

"Ah, well that's rather hard to explain in such an open area. His father though was a noble man, he died for his family and village the same day as Kushina. This unfortunately left Naruto an orphan. Naruto may look more like his father as far as coloring goes, but he is his mother's son," Hiruzen explained, though his words were laced with a promise to explain at a later date.

She wanted to ask for more information, and narrowed her eyes slightly in suspicion but decided she knew enough for now. She could understand why he hadn't said more in such an open area, who knew who could be listening.

_Constant Vigilance! _Moody would probably be rolling in his grave at how much trust she had given the Hokage in such a short time.

She knew just because he reminded her a little of Dumbledore she shouldn't be willing to take his words for face value. She didn't to be honest, but she also didn't like to judge someone on her own bad experiences before giving them a chance. If it was taken as her being naively trusting, well deception was a ninja's best weapon.

"Why is he alone? Where is his guardian?" she demanded, watching as he slowly swung back an forth on the swing.

He had not noticed them standing just a few feet away, but given he was only an Academy student she hadn't expected him to. Still, the Hokage's red and white robes weren't very inconspicuous.

"He doesn't have one. The council made it nearly impossible for anyone to adopt him, and for reasons out of his control I doubt anyone old enough would want to," the Hokage said sadly. "I will have to explain that to you at a later time though. I try to give him some of my time, but I am a busy man. When he was six the orphanage matron kicked him out, so I got him an apartment of his own. He's nearly eight now."

Sachi frowned deeply, a maelstrom of emotions running through her. Anger, a desire to make the orphanage matron pay for doing such a thing to her little cousin, disgust, and sympathy.

Once upon a time she'd been an orphan (technically she supposed she was an orphan once again with her parents deaths two years ago).

At least she'd not been completely alone even if the company she'd had was terrible. The Dursley's had been neglectful and even emotionally abusive, but they didn't get physical often. They liked to pretend she didn't exist, sometimes that was worse than them yelling at her, taking food away from her, or forcing her to do all the chores. Dudley had also gotten better as he got older.

As Violet she'd lost her parents after a year and a few months, as Sachi she'd at least had her parents for fourteen years before they were brutally taken.

"Why exactly did you show me this?" she asked, looking at the Hokage with clear suspicion.

"I assumed you'd want to meet your cousin. As the Uzumaki clan head, he falls under your protection. I assume he would be clan heir, but I do not know how the Uzumaki did such things..." he trailed off, and Sachi nodded.

Clans usually all had their own way of going about clan heir or heiresses. Especially those clan head families that had more than one child. Usually the eldest inherited the title, but it was a simple matter of passing the title on to a close cousin if one did not want the pressure of being in charge of a clan.

If Kushina had never left the clan she would have stayed clan heiress, even though her father was older than Kushina and male. Through Kushina being clan head was as much Naruto's birthright as it was her or her sisters.

She'd have to speak with Karin, but she was pretty sure her sister would pass on the opportunity of being clan head, Karin hated the idea of politics. She wasn't fond of it but she at least had some experience.

"His guardianship would go to you now, if you wanted it of course," Hiruzen said, bringing her out of her thoughts.

She quietly snorted. He already knew she would. She'd never leave family to be alone, being alone was some of the worst hell. If she didn't have Karin with her after loosing their parents she probably would have fallen apart.

Looking at Naruto she could see a little resemblance between him and her father. It was in the shape of his jawline leading to his slightly rounded chin, even if it was obscured by the baby-fat of childhood. It was only a slight resemblance, but then Kushina and Jin had always looks strikingly alike just opposite genders.

Slowly Sachi began to smile.

"I guess I should get to know him first, I think he would be a little wary if a complete stranger claiming to be a cousin just adopted him out of the blue. I know I would," she said, and Hiruzen chuckled.

"I'll introduce you," he said, and the two closed the rest of the distance between themselves and the boy lost in his own world.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Naruto's head snapped up at the movement he caught from his peripheral vision. He grinned upon seeing the old man Hokage.

Very few people liked him in the village, and many children were warned away from him by their parents with a few exceptions (mostly clan children). The Sandaime Hokage had always been one who saw him and not whatever it was that made the village scorn him.

His eyes became more guarded and wary upon spotting the girl with the Hokage. She was unlike most in the village, mostly because of her bright hair color similar in shade to a red fruit; he only knew of a few though he'd never eaten them – strawberries, tomatoes, apples, and peppers.

She probably wasn't very old, but still much older than he was. The brightness of her green eyes were also startling. No one in Konoha had that shade of green, not even that Sakura girl in his class.

"Jiji, who is that?" Naruto asked, looking back to the Hokage with confusion.

"Naruto, this is Uzumaki Sachi. She's here to see you," he said, and seeing Naruto's eyes nearly popping out of his head in surprise, Hiruzen continued. "I believe I shall leave you two to get to know one another. Is that alright, Naruto?"

He nodded almost numbly, unable to form words to express how he felt at the revelations. Sachi smiled softly at the boy, and the Hokage gave one last smile to the two Uzumaki before dismissing himself to allow the cousins time to bond. He did have to call together the Shinobi Council and Elders to discuss recent events.

Sachi watched the Hokage leave for a few seconds before she turned her attention back to the now standing boy. He looked up at her with wide blue eyes, which shown with uncertainty and hope. For whatever reason he seemed like he was starved for attention. She had her suspicions as she took in his maturing chakra signature.

Children usually had the most glowing, innocent of signatures, but his was full of rejection and loneliness. It was sad, and made her angry. Under his own signature she caught a sliver of another chakra, a more hateful, but not quite evil chakra.

Karin had a even more advanced sensory, and in a few years would be able to tell more about a person by their signature than Sachi could, but from what she knew of Konoha's recent history she could put together the pieces. The picture she got was a lonely boy prosecuted for being chosen as the new jinchūriki of the Kyūbi. She wasn't positive of her theory, so she'd have to ask the Hokage later.

"Hello Naruto," she said. "You're an Academy student, right?"

He slowly began to smile.

"Yeah, I am. I'm gonna be the next Hokage, 'ttebayo!" Naruto exclaimed, his frown transforming into a large fox-like grin in seconds.

She blinked in some surprise at the boys sudden cheerfulness before laughing good naturedly.

"I think you'll make a great Hokage one day, Naruto," she said.

Naruto's cheeks flushed red at the compliment and he chuckled happily. Very few people had ever said that to him. Most seemed to dismiss his dream. Looking back at the older girl, Naruto began to wonder how she was related to him.

A part of him could only come up with one option, an option born of hope he knew was unlikely. He couldn't help but ask though, if there was even a little chance she was... he had to know!

"Your name... it's Uzumaki right?" Naruto asked carefully. "Are... are you my mother?"

It was a long shot, he knew that, but maybe she was older than she looked? Many kunoichi aged very gracefully. Sachi's eyes widened, and then she sighed sadly. She didn't know how the kid had come to that conclusion, and it made her sad that the first person who shared his surname he wanted to believe was his mother.

Slowly she shook her head, grimacing mentally at the hope that left his eyes.

"I'm sorry Naruto, but no. I'm not old enough to be. I'm your second cousin, on your mother's side. She was my father's cousin, which means one of their parents were siblings. In this case my grandfather was your grandmother's brother."

She said, explaining their relation as simply as she could. It was clear by his confusion he wasn't positive what a second cousin was, and wasn't all that clear on cousins either. Without a family of his own to explain this, and having no real reason to ask the Hokage to explain it to him, it was no surprise to her.

"Did you know my mother..." he asked so softly she almost missed it.

Sachi reached into her pouch and pulled out one of the few pictures she owned. It was more worn then them, older. It had been one of her father's most precious possessions. Sachi kept it on her along with one other picture of her parents, Karin and herself. Growing up there weren't many pictures taken, and Sachi was used to keeping everything of importance on her person somewhere. Karin was the same.

"I didn't know her personally, but my father told me about her. This is the picture my father showed me, it was the only one he had after... well the village fell. It was taken when they were children in Whirlpool, just before your mother came to Konoha."

She handed the picture to Naruto who held it as if it were made of glass, but took it in eagerly. The picture though old and a little wrinkled was well looked after. Standing in front of a river or stream (it was hard to tell from the picture itself) were two figures.

One was male and much older, a teenager at least seventeen. The other was female, probably no older than six or seven. Both had similar features though. Similar ivory-peach tones of skin, facial structures though the males was more angular and masculine.

They shared the same shade of dark red hair, like Sachi's own, and both had the same shade of dark amethyst eyes, though the males were pupil-less unlike the younger redhead.

Naruto figured the boy must be Sachi's father. They shared similar features. Skin tone, hair color, similar enough facial structure, even if Sachi's was a little more heart-shaped – though it still had the rounded look most Uzumaki had. The girl must be his mother, he thought with a grin. He kind of looked like her, and even a little like the older boy he realized.

"Do you know her name? Why did she come to Konoha? How did she die, did she die or did she just not want to see me anymore?" he ranted, unsure what to believe anymore.

He wondered if Hokage-jiji had known? Naruto had asked him before who his parents were, but he'd never told him anything. Simply said they'd been ninja and he'd know more when the time was right.

As a child he didn't understand, and part of him resented the fact he couldn't tell him anything.

Sachi frowned. She personally didn't see the harm in him knowing, but she also couldn't understand why he didn't already know. Kushina did have her enemies, all ninja did, but she didn't see that stopping other shinobi parents from having children.

Sachi hated keeping secrets, probably because even in her first life she'd hated secrets being kept from her.

"Naruto, if I tell you about your mother you can't tell anyone else. She was a powerful kunoichi, and if it's known you're her son her remaining enemies may try and come after you in retaliation."

Naruto nodded quickly, swearing not to tell a soul. Sachi smiled. She could tell by the determined look in his eyes that he meant it.

"Her name was Uzumaki Kushina, she died the day you were born. Whoever led you to believe you weren't wanted is a liar, a mother will always love their child."

Naruto slowly began to smile again, and attached himself around her waist in a tight hug. She chuckled and patted the boys back gently to show the somewhat tense boy that she didn't mind being hugged.

"Thank you, Sachi-chan!" he exclaimed. "I always thought they just didn't want me. It's what one of the ladies at the orphanage told me anyway. Do you know anything about my father?"

"I'm sorry, no. I only know about your mother because she was a close cousin," she said, though she thought she might have an idea.

His father must have been important if it was such a big secret the Hokage wouldn't dare mention it in public. Then there was the fact Naruto resembled the fourth face on the mountain portraying the Hokage's.

She couldn't say for sure, it could be a coincidence and what could one really glen from a rock face? She'd have to see a picture of the man to know for sure, or just wait for the Hokage to tell her. She doubted she'd be allowed to tell him when she did know for sure.

She was sure the Hokage would have stopped her if he didn't want her revealing Naruto's mother to him. Sachi did have to stop the anger that built at whoever the woman was that would tell a child that he wasn't wanted.

Smiling as she returned the hug Naruto didn't seem to want to pull away from, and it hit her that it was probably because no one had hugged him often.

"How about we get ramen?" she asked. "I think I saw a ramen stand upon my arrival here in Konoha. Do you like ramen?"

Naruto pulled away almost instantly, grinning the widest grin she'd ever seen and grabbed onto her hand with a happy laugh.

"Do I like ramen? Do I ever! Miso is the best!" he exclaimed laughing.

"Hm... I'll have to argue that my sweet misguided little one, shōyu (soy sauce) ramen is the absolute best," Sachi said, a wide smirk and victorious look in her eyes as they walked – or more like Naruto half dragged her – towards the ramen stand.

Hiruzen chuckled. He watched the two walk off towards Ichiraku's through his crystal ball. He could already hear the spirit of Kushina correcting both on how shio (salt) ramen was the best.

The old Hokage was happy to see a true smile on Naruto's face for once, instead of the fake ones he commonly wore.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Ibiki and Mitarashi Anko were among the only ones disappointed at how affective the Kotoamatsukami was. Danzō spilled any secret and answered all questions the two interrogators had. It was irksome for them, and at least Anko made sure to complain.

The elders and council of clan heads, which would soon include Uzumaki Sachi once the Uzumaki were reestablished as a clan inside Konoha, had a field day at the evidence he brought against Danzō. There were enough to fill two or three cabinets.

The old war-hawk had been busy over the decades. Some things weren't really all that illegal, but there was enough to put Danzō to death quickly.

Hiruzen had already had groups of his most trusted ANBU infiltrate and overtake the foundation, though it was going to be by no means easy. Danzō did train his soldiers well. Thankfully none of Konoha were aware thanks to how effectively Danzō had hidden the foundation.

Once completely secured his ANBU would bring the Root ANBU to the cells inside the T&amp;I until Ibiki and Anko could get to them. Seals were placed to avoid them using their chakra, it couldn't take it away completely since chakra was needed for life, but it surpressed it so much it was cut off from the tenketsu.

Homura and Koharu had always been rather supportive of Danzō in the past, but now they seemed startled and even disgusted at everything found against the third elder.

The clan heads were even more disgusted by some of his more heinous crimes. Some were outraged by the records of how many Root Danzō had from the the clans, mainly the Yamanaka and Aburame.

The verdict was as Hiruzen predicted. Shimura Danzō was guilty of treason. He would be dead by the next afternoon. The civilians and those not on the elder or shinobi council would believe that it was heart failure brought on by stress.

For once things seemed to be looking up. The next order of business, other than getting the Uzumaki clan settled in, was to fix the damage done to the Shinobi Academies curriculum.

**.**

**.**

**.**

She had decided to take the offer of building a small compound. Shisui was especially helpful with finding a plot of land both big enough and not overly secluded or close to the main shopping center of the village.

She wanted it be small but not too small. There were only three Uzumaki at the moment, but maybe in the future there might be more. In the end an area was found, it was closest to the Uchiha District compared to the Aburame, Inuzuka, Nara, Hyūga or Yamanaka clan compounds.

It would also be the smallest, but still big enough for a few houses to be built and the walls that would surround it. It would take time before it could be moved into, before it could be completely built. Until then Sachi and Karin continued to stay with Shisui.

So far a small wall had been built, along with the main house and a few smaller ones thanks to the help of Tenzō and his Mokuton. He was someone she'd recently been introduced to outside his roll as ANBU. He didn't like talking about his past or about himself and seemed a bit socially awkward. He apparently wasn't related to the Shodai Hokage, but because of his past he was able to use the Mokuton – though it wasn't as strong as Senju Hashirama apparently.

Orochimaru was mentioned, and from what she learned in the weeks she'd been in Konoha he'd been a traitor and was forced out of Konoha when his experiments were discovered. He reminded her far too much of Voldemort. Which led her to her next concern; why did it always have to be snakes?

She liked Tenzō's company and he knew a bit about plants and one of Sachi's past times was gardening. Even in her first life as Violet she'd loved gardening and flowers. Until she was eligible for missions Sachi had actually gotten a job at Yamanaka Flowers. The money put back for any Uzumaki in Konoha by Mito was a relief, she still didn't want to rely on it.

A week after getting settled in Konoha she'd been tested by the Hokage for her rank, while Karin had been attending the Academy already. The test was pretty basic, she was simply to fight Konoha's ninja, those of Hiruzen's choosing. One of which was Tenzō, another being Kakashi and a few others.

It hadn't been easy.

Other than her chains and her very high fire affinity, her best skills were her fūinjutsu, ability to heal, and knowledge of herbs. Her taijutsu was good, but not great as she was still perfecting the Uzumaki clan taijutsu her parents taught her and learning the Panther clans own taijutsu. Her ninjutsu was alright, very good if one counted her chains, healing ability and ability to use fire chakra in her taijutsu. Otherwise she knew a total of six ninjutsu, not counting what were considered Academy basics.

One lightning ninjutsu which took her months to perfect since she had no lightning affinity (her father had a lightning affinity though), three fire ninjutsu, one earth ninjutsu, and one wind ninjutsu.

She knew more about wielding her fire chakra than she did her secondary affinity of wind. Learning earth ninjutsu was by far easier for her than lightning, which was why she never bothered working with lightning chakra more than to use the Raiton Kage Bunshin.

Her genjutsu was nearly nonexistent other than dispelling it, but that was mainly because she had never been taught beyond that. Neither of her parents had been good at genjutsu, her mother had been a medic-nin, her father a ninjutsu and taijutsu specialist.

Her Kenjutsu was limited to using her tantō, and she was mediocre at that since she didn't like Kenjutsu much. She lasted a few minutes against Kakashi, Tenzō and Shisui, but in the end she lost to all three. Seeing as they were ANBU, and had bloodlimits of their own to use, it wasn't that much of a surprise.

She did win against a girl named Yūhi Kurenai, but the woman who was just a few years older than her was very gifted in genjutsu and nearly had her more than once during the minutes they fought. By this point the Hokage had seen what he needed, and she was given the rank of Tokubetsu Jōnin.

Though Tokubetsu Jōnin (Special Jōnin) were those who specialized in a specific area at a jōnin-level, rather than all-around jōnin training, they could later become regular jōnin if they wanted. The Hokage's reasoning was that she was not quite skilled or experienced enough to be a jōnin, but was too skilled in certain areas to be considered a chūnin.

She didn't care about rank to be honest. One of the only reasons she'd become a ninja, other than the fact her parents were ninja, was so she had the power to protect her family. She'd failed once with her parents, but she wouldn't do the same with Karin or Naruto.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Sachi groaned as she allowed the water of the hot spring to sooth her bruised body. A hour after her test she had been invited by Kurenai to go to the Hot Springs. It sounded nice, she didn't get the luxury often before.

"Congratulations by the way, making Tokubetsu Jōnin," Kurenai said from her place in the hot spring.

She hadn't met the girl before the test, and she seemed like a nice girl. To find out she was an Uzumaki was a surprise. She actually remembered Uzumaki Kushina. Sachi reminded Kurenai a little of the woman, especially given the chakra chains she used during the test.

Kurenai hadn't realized just how powerful those chains were until they were wrapped around her, an almost crescent shaped kunai tip leveled at her throat.

"Thanks," Sachi said, smiling. "You're very good at genjutsu, I only had that much trouble with Shisui."

Kurenai's lips thinned at the mention of the new Uchiha clan head. She'd always been a bit sore that someone younger than her was better at genjutsu than her. She couldn't deny that Shisui was better at genjutsu than her, and it wasn't completely because of his Sharingan.

"So, how are you settling into Konoha?" she asked, trying to make polite conversation.

"It's great, I really like it here," she said. "It'll be a bit less stressful once the compound is finished and Karin and I can move in."

Sachi wanted the compound to be livable before she talked to Naruto about living with them and the adoption. He'd already met Karin, and they got along well enough. Karin thought he was a bit slow, but nice, and Naruto thought she was a bit stuck up but also nice. He was just happy to have family, he probably wouldn't have cared if Karin was dismissive of him.

The two continued to chat idly for a few minutes before Sachi stood up, grabbing her towel and wrapping it around herself before stepping up out of the hot spring.

"It was really nice meeting you, Kurenai-san, but I've got to go. The Academy should be letting out any minute now and I promised Naruto I'd take him for ramen and Karin for okonomiyaki."

With one last wave goodbye, Sachi left to get dressed and head to pick Naruto and Karin up.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Sachi-chan!" Naruto yelled happily upon seeing her waiting for him and Karin.

He still couldn't believe he wasn't alone anymore. He'd dreamed of a family before, but had given up on the idea anyone would want to be around him.

"Nee-chan," Karin said, coming up behind the blonde boy. She repositioned her dark red messenger bag over her shoulder and smiled. She had been unsure of the decision to join Konoha but she was quickly beginning to enjoy having somewhere to call home again. "Are we gonna get okonomiyaki?"

"Ramen!" Naruto said, breaking from the hug he had Sachi in. "Come on Karin-neechan, I'm sure they have something like that in ramen flavor."

Karin looked at Naruto as if he'd said the sky was purple, and Sachi raised an eyebrow before chuckling.

"Don't worry Naruto, we'll get ramen, and then I'll take Karin to get some okonomiyaki. I found a place that sells it not far from Ichiraku's so we'll only be a few minutes. Afterwards we can have dango."

"Ya know, Nee-chan," Karin started as they began walking towards the ramen stand. "If you eat so much you'll gain weight..."

"Funny Imouto," Sachi interrupted her little sister who grinned up at her impishly. "I haven't eaten in hours, and I finished my test for rank just over an hour ago. I think it'll be fine."

"I don't get it," Naruto said, confusion written in his expression. "I eat lots of ramen all the time and I never gain any weight."

Both sisters sweat-dropped, their faces falling at the words the boy spoke.

"Lucky," Karin muttered, and Sachi grunted in agreement. High metabolism or not even ninja had to watch their weight, unless they were Akimichi.

True to her words Sachi left Naruto at the ramen stand and went with Karin to get the girl her okonomiyaki, but not before ordering her own bowl of shoyu ramen with extra chāshū (sliced barbecued or braised pork) and menma (lactate-fermented bamboo shoots).

It wasn't like she didn't like okonomiyaki, she liked it fine as long as it was made without the squid or octopus. She liked fish fine, just not those two certain types.

After eating, Naruto eating up to six bowls before Sachi realized what a hit the little money she had on hand was taking, the three Uzumaki made their way to the closest place to get dango. Thankfully the owner didn't outright kick Naruto out, but also didn't have anything nice to say about him either.

Seeing the negativity towards her cousin, Sachi glared harshly but held her tongue as she ordered the dango to go and left once the order came back to her.

"I'm sorry 'bout that," Naruto muttered, loud enough they both heard. "I don't know why they don't like me... but I understand if you don't want to be seen with me..."

"Don't say that, stupid," Karin snapped. "You're family. An Uzumaki never abandons family!"

Sachi smiled, and placed her hand on Naruto's shoulder.

"Karin is right, Naruto. You're family, it doesn't matter what the village thinks of you or us. Uzumaki stick together, and we help those who are important to us, blood or not."

Naruto grinned, forcing tears of relief and happiness back as he grabbed Sachi's hand in his. Sachi smiled and the two sisters began walking Naruto home. He didn't live that far from where they stayed with Shisui in his apartment.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"You know if you keep holding the kid like that, you're gonna end up dropping him," Sachi said, a little amusement in her voice as she took the nearly two year old from Shisui.

At least half of the surviving Uchiha attended the Academy, leaving Shisui with those under the age of six to watch, or pay genin teams to watch when he either had a mission or meeting. The two youngest where barely two and nearly two; Yuichi and Minoru. The one she was holding was Minoru, who wouldn't turn two until December 3rd.

"Huh, you're good at that," Shisui said, sitting down at the table across from the redhead.

"Thanks I guess. I was eight when Karin was born, so I remember when she was this age. She was always crying though, always wanting any attention she could get," Sachi said with a short chuckle.

She held the child on her lap and tried feeding him the mushed up food once he was calm and no longer fussing. It was the truth but she also remembered how Teddy was at this age, though those memories were distant with how much time had passed between then and now.

"Are you two gonna continue to flirt with each other or something?" Karin asked as she headed to the fridge to get the milk for her cereal.

Her school bag was over her shoulder, and her shoulder length hair pulled into a short ponytail. Her glasses were clipped to the strap of her bag. Others probably assumed they were reading glasses. Sasuke snorted as he headed for the table, having just entered the room as well. The other children had already eaten and either headed to the Academy early or were watching TV or playing in the living room.

"What!?" Sachi exclaimed, and Karin snickered as she returned to the table with the milk.

Shisui looked a bit like a dear caught in the headlights, unsure what to say or do and Sachi was turning as red as her hair.

"Was it a secret?" Karin asked, and Sachi glared at the other redhead.

"We weren't flirting." She sighed, shaking her head. "Finish your cereal and go, you'll be late if you don't leave soon."

Sasuke and Karin finished within a few minutes and were out the door before the other two could think to say anything to them.

"They forgot their lunches, didn't they?" Shisui asked, jerking his head in the direction of two packed bento on the counter. She sighed.

"Drop it off at the school for me, Shisui?" she asked, standing with Minoru situated at her hip. "I'll drop Minoru off in the living room with his sister, before I go. Hokage-sama said he wanted to talk to me this morning."

Shisui nodded. He remembered her mentioning it to him yesterday. Afterwards she was going to continue working on the new Uzumaki compound with Tenzō.

"Sure, I'll drop them off before I leave the village for my mission."

Sachi smiled, almost awkwardly as only a short time before Karin had been teasing them about their relationship – which was just that of good friends. Neither were anywhere near ready for anything more.

"I'll see you when you get back," she finally said. "Be careful..."

Shisui sighed as he watched Sachi's dark red hair sway behind her as she left the room. He was more than thankful for Sachi's help. He wasn't sure he could have handled everything without some help.

It wouldn't be long before he could move the clan back to the Uchiha district, and out of the apartments which were too small since most of the time the children where in his apartment for meals or just not wanting to be alone.

He'd survived about a week after the massacre, but by the time the second week creeped upon them he was nearly spent as far as patience went.

Supporting a clan was harder work than it appeared from the outside, and he now understood why his father had given the title away so easily. Why Fugaku had always looked so worn out and closed off.

He was just lucky all he had to deal with was the council meetings (the civilian council was more annoying than he'd previously thought), taking care of the surviving clan members, and not the clan elders.

It was far from easy, but with time that passed it got easier.


	7. Of Bonds and Missions

**Meddling In Fate. **

**Chapter ****7: ****Of Bonds and Missions.**

"_You understand that you can't tell Naruto of his father, right?" _

_Sachi sighed, nodding her head in understanding. She understood now that she knew for sure who his father was, though she didn't have to agree with it. _

"_I do, but he'll need to know eventually, Hokage-sama," she said. "I request permission to tell him once he has matured enough in my eyes. By the time he is a chūnin if nothing else." _

_Hiruzen frowned for a split second before nodding. He did want to tell Naruto of his parents, not just his mother but his father, but with all the enemies Minato had. Iwa was just the tip of that ice burg. Naruto needed to mature first, to be able to protect himself better than he could now. _

"_I will permit this. Once he has become a genin I will also permit you to explain to him about the Kyūbi, until then be careful what you teach him in fūinjutsu, when it comes to the bijū in any case. I already know I can't dissuade you from teaching him fūinjutsu, it is the right of any Uzumaki." _

"_Thank you Hokage-sama," Sachi said, bowing out of respect. _

_If there was one thing she respected it was the fact Hiruzen was usually an honest man – unless it was an unrelated S-rank secret, in which case she understood it was not her business to know. He didn't sugar coat the truth, or hide behind manipulations or many half-truths. At least no more than any political leader of a village needed to. _

_Still, it was nice to know that while there were parallels between Dumbledore and Hiruzen, they were actually very different people. _

"_One last thing before you go, Sachi-san. I have the adoption papers here for Naruto. Once you've talked to Naruto and signed them bring them back to me. After that anything those who do not wish to see Naruto with a family will have no loopholes or the like to go through." _

_Sachi nodded, taking the envelope before she left the Hokage's office. _

_**.**_

_**.**_

_**.**_

**Present Day;**

Sachi yawned, standing behind the counter of her afternoon job. It was part-time, the rest of her time spent training, on missions (she did not take many at the moment, but the nations were having a rather peaceful time at the moment. If one didn't count the civil war in Water Country), or at home with Karin and Naruto.

Thanks to Tenzō the Uzumaki compound had been built and furnished with pluming added last within three months. That was with working for a few hours everyday, with only a few breaks. Thankfully the compound was small, so it didn't take the amount of time a much larger compound would have taken.

She'd become rather good friends with Tenzō in the process though, and she and Shisui were even closer as friends. Living together for so long probably helped. After the compound was finished she'd set about decorating, which she didn't spend a lot of time doing since it could be completed after moving in.

She basically painted what needed painting, put curtains where it was needed, and got the furniture where she wanted it.

With help it wasn't that long of a process, and Shisui and the children of the clan didn't mind lending a hand – well other than Sasuke who still didn't seem to like her much. She got the feeling he was still bottling up his emotions three months after the massacre and part of him blamed her for not saving his parents or other clan members. Sooner or later he'd snap, she knew because she'd been in the same dark hole once before.

The weekend after she, Karin and Naruto all moved into the main family house in the compound. It was moderately large, larger than many of the homes in the compound. Her favorite part was the large garden she'd started in what would be considered the back yard.

She had another garden deeper in the compound for mixtures not considered very safe, in other words herbs she could use for poison making or cures. She wanted them separate from the flowers, fruits, and vegetables.

As a house warming of sorts Shisui had even had a koi fish pond built for them in the back yard, sort of in the center of the garden, two wooden benches a few meters away so one could sit and relax. It was a large area, so even with all of that there was still room to train, not that there wasn't more area to train in the compound because there was plenty of room.

Her job at Yamanaka Flowers had been something she meant to be temporary, but Inoichi and his wife had convinced her to keep the part time job. That her hours could be negotiated around the time she needed to keep in shape as a kunoichi, run missions and spend time with her family. In the end she'd decided to only work Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Usually she worked from ten until three.

In the time since her arrival so much seemed to happen. She'd made acquaintances, friends, and even adopted her second cousin who she hadn't even known existed before she was told. Sometimes she got the feeling Naruto saw her more as his mother than his big sister or cousin.

It was in the way he looked at her when she told him about the adoption just days after meeting him (it had probably been about two weeks to the day). In the way he sometimes stuttered over her name, or stopped himself short of calling her 'Kaa-chan'.

She played it off as if she hadn't noticed to not further embarrass the boy, sooner or later it would come up. She didn't mind if Naruto wanted to call her 'Kaa-chan' instead of Nee-chan.

Naruto's eighth birthday passed, and she'd made him the best birthday cake she could. Though she could cook, baking had always been something she had to focus on very carefully otherwise it turned out like flavorless bricks. It seemed to have gotten worse with rebirth.

She'd made the largest pot of homemade Miso Ramen with extra pork that she could, and invited as many children as parents would allow to come to the birthday party of the village pariah.

Most were clan heirs from Naruto's class, which is where she'd gone to invite those Naruto's age and Shisui had helped her set up so all the Uchiha children had been at the party as well. It was a good thing she'd made a large cake.

Sachi hadn't seen Naruto as happy as he was that day, not even when she volunteered to help him with his homework and training. Steadily there was an improvement with his grades, but Naruto was someone who learned by doing better than anything. Written test and book knowledge would never be his strongest point, but she found that despite the way he acted he was far from stupid.

He was a very smart little boy, if he'd only been given the chance by his previous teachers. Iruka didn't have all that much time to give him extra help, and Naruto had never asked for help anyways. So used to his teachers trying to fail him by any means.

Shisui's birthday was eight days after Naruto's, and though it was less eventful she still made cupcakes, which she later presented some of to Shisui. She'd also given him a present, which wasn't much but she'd never been very good at giving presents.

Naruto had received a small photo album with a few pictures she'd found of his mother with the help of Kakashi and the Hokage. It also had a copy of the picture she'd showed him the day they met. There were also pictures recently taken of him, Karin and Sachi. Along with a few others.

For Shisui she'd put together a personal medical pouch with common cures for most poisons used, some common but potent poisons in both liquid and powder form but sectioned off from everything that would heal. The poisons had been added as a second thought.

The rest was extra bandages, tape, creams to promote healing and prevent infection, along with burn salves. Everything of which the common ninja with little to no medic-nin training would know how to use.

Shisui had been surprised she even knew when his birthday was, but it was thanks to Umeko and some of the other Uchiha children she still saw every other day if not daily that she knew when his birthday was. To be fair, she'd never told him when her birthday was either.

That changed after she'd given him his cupcake and present, so reluctantly Sachi had told him her birthday was on July 31st.

"Yo, you awake Sachi?"

Thick black lashes fluttered before opening to see a lazily calm Copy-nin in front of her. Standing up straight, she tried to act as if she'd never been asleep.

"Oh Kakashi, I'm fine just thinking about the past." She brushed her long hair back, annoyed at feeling only the bangs and side-bangs which framed her face asymmetrically.

She had the thigh length locks piled up into a high ponytail which wasn't common – even when on a mission she commonly wore it down or in a braid or bun of some sort, anything else just served to annoy her.

She had the habit of running her hand through her hair, and if it was pulled together than she couldn't do so easily. Pulling a few locks over her shoulder, she combed her fingers through it the calming effect was instant.

"Right," Kakashi said.

"What's up, you here for some flowers? I didn't think you were seeing anyone," Sachi said, and Kakashi coughed.

"No, uh just some flowers for some old friends," he said, and it only took a second for her to realize by old friends he meant dead friends.

"Oh... I see. So what sort of flowers are you looking for?" she asked, coming around the counter and leading him into the greenhouse area with most if not all the flowers. It was about time she watered them anyway.

"i usually just pick up lilies, but I have a few more people to lay flowers down for this year," Kakashi admitted. "The Yamanaka usually pick the flowers for me, I've never been much to care for meanings or type."

Sachi laughed, used to hearing this almost daily. Most who came in the shop just wanted flowers for their sick family, recovering family, or other loved ones. Of course there were those who needed flowers for a funeral or memorial. They tended to want flowers like roses or lilies, few asked for less well known flowers or flowers that would get across a certain meaning for them.

"Lilies are a good choice. May I suggest two others for you though?"

Kakashi shrugged. "Sure, why not."

She stopped at a certain spot and gathered some white lilies, an odd looking white flower that had a lily-like resemblance, and a very light purple color.

"I'm sure you know what a lily is. The other white flower is Asphodel, and the purplish one is Aster tataricus or more known as shion." she said before walking over to a table which was used as a work surface for putting together arrangements.

"What do they mean?" he asked, curious.

"Well, White lilies mean purity, shion means remembrance or I wont forget you. Asphodel is a bit more exotic I guess, maybe a bit more morbid – it basically means my regrets follow you to the grave. The mythology behind it is interesting though. It was said that thousands of years ago in a far off land it was thought to be the flower of the dead and underworld. It was often connected to a goddess, Persephone, who was tricked into marrying the god of the dead, she was said to wear a garland of asphodel..."

Sachi stopped suddenly as she realized she was rambling again. Her face heated up as she glanced from her work with the flowers to see Kakashi did not look annoyed but actually intrigued.

"Huh, I've never heard that tale before," he said. "Where did you hear it, If I may ask?"

She smiled, and said the first thing that could explain away a legend obviously never heard in the Elemental Nations.

"My mother told me, her mother told her... I don't really know how it began. Asphodel did grow quite well on Whirlpool though. Along with Iris', violets, and lilies."

Sachi had always thought that ironic, since her favorite flowers before and now were said flowers, along with lavender roses and forget-me-nots.

"I know that much at least. Kushina used to talk of Whirlpool often, though she had the same sad look in her eyes as well." Kakashi shook the memories away after a few seconds.

"Thank you for your help, Sachi-san," Kakashi said, having already agreed with her suggestion of flowers.

"It's my job, but your welcome," she said, walking with him back to the front of the shop.

The bell above the door rang. Sounds of feet and children entering let her know she had been too late to head out to pick Karin and Naruto up, and that her shift was over.

"Nee-chan, where were you? We waited for twenty minutes almost... well we went and got ramen after ten but..." Karin coughed as she stopped her little rant, a habit both sisters had when nervous or unsure what to say or do.

Naruto chuckled, grinning widely as he rubbed the back of his head. She sighed, shaking her head.

"You know ramen before dinner will cause you not to be as hungry tonight..." she trailed off, and placed the bundle of flowers on the counter, she went around and quickly got Kakashi the total for his purchase.

"Sorry Sachi-neechan," Naruto said. "I doubt it though, your food is as good as ramen!"

"Better than ramen in my opinion," Karin said, and Naruto's cheeks puffed out for a few seconds as he turned his narrowed gaze onto Karin.

"Take that back, Rin-chan!" he exclaimed, and Karin groaned at the mangling of her name.

It wasn't like she minded too much that Naruto had given her a nickname, but the one he chose was something she hadn't been called in many years. When she was still very young, she barely remembered her parents calling her that.

Kakashi's hand gripped tighter around the bundle of flowers held together by a white ribbon tied in a pretty bow. For a moment he wasn't the one getting flowers. Instead he was a child again, standing with his two teammates as Obito and Rin argued over what to have for lunch while Minato-sensei got flowers for his not-so-secret girlfriend.

It was rare the two argued over anything, but it wasn't unheard of either. They were trivial things though and hardly considered true arguments. He sighed, shaking his head. Usually he could ignore things like this, but Naruto had already reminded him of his teammate when he would be assigned to watch him.

Mostly it was the fact he planned to visit the graves of his former team and leave the flowers for them. He was always a little more emotional on those days. Sachi chuckled, and took the money Kakashi handed her, as if on autopilot.

She had noticed him stiffen for a few seconds before shaking it off. She didn't ask, it wasn't any of her business. They were hardly close friends.

"Inoichi should be in soon to take over. I apologize for not being there on time, I lost track of time." Sachi turned to Kakashi and smiled. "Have a nice day, Kakashi."

"Thanks, I'll see you around," he said, and nodded his acknowledgement to the two curious children.

"Who was he?" Naruto asked once the silver haired jōnin left.

"Hm, oh Kakashi? Just a customer and friend. We met through Shisui."

Naruto frowned at Shisui's name, before nodding. It wasn't like he didn't like Shisui, the two were somewhat similar in personality. His problem was how much time the man spent with Sachi. Karin was always teasing the two about their feelings for each other, and while he didn't understand some of it, he did know about crushes.

He wasn't sure he liked the fact Shisui might like Sachi more than a friend. It never occurred to his eight year old mind that Sachi may like Shisui as more than a friend as well.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Uzumaki Sachi, these will be your teammates for the mission," Hiruzen said to the shinobi he'd assembled in his office. "These are Shiranui Genma and Yamashiro Aoba."

"Hello," Sachi greeted with a light bow of her head.

The other two returned the greeting. Both were dressed in a standard Konoha shinobi outfit, complete with flak jacket. Genma had shoulder-length brown hair and brown eyes, in his mouth was a senbon. Aoba had spiky black hair. His eyes were hidden behind red-framed sunglasses.

"You'll have to get to know each other another time, I'm afraid. This will be a B-rank mission. You'll be heading into the Land of Water. There has been talk of the civil war there reaching further than Water Country and into Fire Country soon. As you know we do have quite a few bloodline clans, so this news is troubling if the Yondaime Mizukage is truly thinking of expanding his war. I want you to set up in a village close to where the rumors originated. I will leave the specifics to you. You'll be gone for at least two weeks to a month so make arrangements if needed."

Hiruzen turned to Genma.

"Genma you'll be in charge of this mission from here. You will need to blend in as much as possible, we don't want the Mizukage knowing you're there."

"Of course, Hokage-sama," Genma said, before turning to his new teammates temporary or otherwise. They were all three Tokubetsu jōnin. "Meet on the roof for briefing in an hour."

Aoba and Sachi nodded, and bowing in respect to the Hokage the three ninja were dismissed.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Naruto, Karin I'm home," Sachi said, entering the front door of the rather traditionally built house.

It was still in need of some decoration, being rather sparsely done since it had only been a short time since they moved in, but otherwise already had a homey feel to it.

"Hmm, oh Hime you're home," Seina said as she lazed in the living room, her head barely raised off her paws as she opened her eyes. "The cubs are outside, Karin said she'd show Naruto how to make an explosive tag..." The pawn yawned, and closed her eyes again while Sachi paled.

The idea of Naruto knowing how to make his own explosions, the level of damage depending on how he wrote the tag, was a scary thought. Especially considering she hadn't even finished showing him how to make storage scrolls yet. It wasn't like they were that hard, they were rather basic fūinjutsu, but there was a reason giving an Uzumaki something that could explode usually ended in a large explosion.

Sachi herself had a very strong fire element, rare for an Uzumaki, and as such had no shame in admitting to being a little bit of a pyromaniac. She didn't know if it was an Uzumaki trait but Karin was the same, just like their parents had been. Chances were Naruto...

Sachi winced at the sound of a small explosion in their back yard reaching her ears. Exiting through the back she was met by the sight of a smoke cloud from the explosion and the younger two Uzumaki coughing in the middle of it.

"You let him set it off here?" she deadpanned once the smoke cleared, hands on her hips.

Naruto's eyes widened when he saw her, and he laughed nervously rubbing the back of his head. Karin just smiled, a spark in her eyes that said she'd enjoyed teaching the other boy how to make things explode and the end result of it.

Sachi bit her own lip to stop from chuckling in amusement herself, and simply shook her head.

"If I leave on a mission I wont return to find you've turned our home into a mess of rubble will I?" she asked.

"Wait, what?" Naruto asked, his face suddenly shocked and somewhat afraid.

"You've got a mission?" Karin asked.

"Don't sound so surprised. I've had missions before this, albeit this is the longest I'll be gone," she said, a slight frown on her face. "If you want you can stay with Shisui..."

"Uhhg, and have to be around that bastard Sasuke?" Naruto asked, a look of disgust on his face. Karin didn't seem to like the idea either.

She ran a hand through her hair, and shrugged. "It's up to you, I trust you two are mature enough to handle looking after yourself until I return. Seina will stay here as well just in case you need to get a hold of me for emergencies."

"Where are you going?" Karin asked.

"Nowhere important," Sachi said with a smile. She didn't want to worry Karin or Naruto more than they already would be, and she knew at least Karin was aware of the civil war in Mizu no Kuni. "Why don't we go inside now. I have to get ready for my mission and you two should rest after that display of fūinjutsu. Oh and before I get back I expect the backyard to be in one piece again."

Naruto groaned as the three entered the house.

**.**

**.**

**.**

An Hour and a half later, Sachi left the village with a backpack – hidden seals in multiple areas of the pack – and looking like nothing more than a civilian.

She wore a silky burnt orange kimono with white and pale yellow blossoms decorating the bottom edge of the kimono and sleeves. The obi was black and white. On her feet were simple black sandals. She had decided on very light make-up, which she commonly did not bother with. Her ears held their usual multiple piercings.

Her long red hair was hidden by chakra dye, which was a special hair-dye ninja used when a henge was too unreliable. It could only be returned to its natural red when placing chakra into ones hair, essentially burning the chakra-dye out, and it didn't have the harmful qualities civilian hair-dyes did.

She hated the idea of dying her hair, she'd always been rather proud of the Uzumaki red hair. It kept her connected to her parents and other ancestors. Unfortunately it was just too recognizable for such a delicate mission. When Genma suggested it she grudgingly agreed. It was now a deep black, and she already missed her red hair.

Genma and Aoba were also dressed like civilians. They had decided that while on the mission Genma and Aoba would play the role of her brothers. It was simple and not that outlandish, with her hair now black they could pass for siblings. It would make showing up in their target village somewhat easier.

This was her first long-term B-rank mission since joining Konoha. Though she knew how unpredictable her luck could be, she hoped the mission went well.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**AN: So... the ending sort of gave me trouble. I wasn't sure how I wanted to end the chapter but this was what it turned out as. The next few chapters may deal with their mission. Anyways I hope you all enjoyed the chapter.**


	8. Tōsui Village: The Turning Point

**AN: Sorry for the long wait, but here we go. I have the next chapter nearly ready as well. Anyway after this ordeal is resolved we'll probably have a bit of a time-skip. **

**Now, I don't remember when or who but they seemed confused as to why she would work in a flower shop part-time. My answer is simple, it's part of a coping mechanism for her, but mostly it's something she enjoys (something she enjoyed even as Violet). I assume that's in part why Ino continues working in her family shop, and why the Yamanaka even own a flower shop to begin with. **

**I don't know how often I'll be updating right now, but I will as often as I can. **

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Meddling In Fate. **

**Chapter ****8: ****Tōsui**** Village: The Turning Point. **

**October 31st, 2003:**

"_Hahaha, oh that's priceless mate!" Ron exclaimed after he'd finished with the full out laughter. _

_It had started when he'd seen what she'd decided to do for the first Halloween she'd been talked into celebrating the Muggle way. Two cat ears twitched on-top of her head, and a long sleek tail flicked behind her. Her eyes were slitted like a feline, and her canines were sharper like a cat. Her finger-nails were a bit longer but not quite sharp since she didn't want to accidentally cut Teddy. _

_It was a partial Animagus transformation, but the Muggles would never notice this. It had been in her sixth year she'd completed a full Animagus transformation. Her animal being a black panther with nearly glowing green eyes. Thankfully her vision was better than twenty-twenty in her animal form. _

_It had been Hermione's idea, and to be honest Violet was always curious about the holiday. The idea that complete strangers would give you candy had intrigued her as a child, and she remembered watching Dudley return from trick-or-treating. _

_The Dursley's had usually been able to explain away why she never participated. From being sick, to mourning the death of her parents (ironic, since she hadn't known they'd died on Halloween until she was eleven), to it being against the religion her parents had practiced and they wanted to honor them by not exposing her to the holiday. _

_Eventually Violet thought the neighborhood just forgot to even care she existed unless it was more trash talk the Dursley's spread. That was then though. Violet may not have forgiven her Aunt and Uncle for her miserable childhood, but Dudley had changed over the years. Ever since she'd saved him from that Dementor. She thought it might have been the trauma of the Dementor's effects taking it's toll on him. Making him look back on his life. _

_They were actually on rather good terms since the war ended, though it had taken nearly two years before she even thought to contact him. When she did he was engaged of all things to a nice girl, the complete opposite of his mother, and had actually lost quite a bit of weight. He hardly looked like the same person anymore. _

_Anyway, she had relented to Hermione's suggestion when she brought up how Teddy might enjoy the tradition of trick-or-treating. He'd never been before, and he was five. Even though Hermione and Ron had no children they were bringing Victoire, Bill and Fleur's four year old with them. _

_They would meet up with Dudley, his two children (two year old Francis and one year old Douglas), and his wife – Iris (the irony that he'd married a girl named after a flower, considering the Evans family tradition of naming the daughters after flowers, was not lost on Violet). Violet had even heard rumors Iris was a few months pregnant with their third child... it all seemed so fast to Violet, who couldn't help but feel a bit jealous of her cousin's family. _

_She had Teddy, who she'd adopted when he was hardly a year old after Andromeda's death, but it wasn't quite the same. If Fred had survived... well she wondered how things would be different now. Would she be married? Would Teddy have a father figure instead of just her to look to as his mother? Would they have even worked out? _

_They'd only been dating a few months when he died, and it was only stubbornness that convinced her to begin a relationship with him knowing she was leaving to hunt for Horcuxes in the fall. The what-ifs would tear her apart if she'd let them, even five years after the war. _

"_Laugh it up," she said. "I didn't feel like going through too much trouble when I am only doing this for Teddy. You and Hermione know how I feel about Halloween." _

_Ron nodded, but there was a mischievous gleam in his eyes that reeked of the Weasley twins. "Yeah, and how ironic would it be if your first kid was born on Halloween?" _

"_It would be ironic if I kicked the bucket on Halloween," Violet snarked back, rolling her eyes. _

_She recently bought contacts at Hermione's suggestion, but they tended to irritate her so she hardly ever wore them. She made an exception for tonight, and when there was urgent Auror business that needed her to be on the field. She remembered how annoying it was to lose her glasses when fighting Death Eaters, she was nearly blind without them. _

_Ron frowned. _

_"That's not ironic, that's tragic," he began, before adding as an afterthought. "Unless you go in your sleep of old age, I guess." _

"_Seriously you two, are you really debating how and when Vi will die?" Hermione asked, Victoire on her hip. _

_Hermione had put on a pair of black leggings, a knee length skirt, purple blouse, and had on a black and orange witch hat – or what Muggle's thought was a good representation of one, and to be honest it wasn't far off just way more flamboyant – on her head. _

_Victoire looked a lot like Fleur, but she had red hair even if it was closer to strawberry blonde and lighter than any of the other Weasley's hair. Her eyes were the same blue as Fleur as well. She looked to be dressed like a fairy – it was probably something Hermione bought for Victoire since it looked to be Muggle made. _

_Ron wasn't dressed up any further than to wear more traditional wizarding clothing and a cloak. The cloak was something they all wore though. Teddy was dressed up to look like a little wolf, which he'd chosen himself since she had taken him with her to the store to pick it out. Wolves were his favorite animal so she wasn't surprised. _

"_Die?" Teddy asked, confused on what that word meant exactly. He was pretty sure he'd heard it before. Violet shook her head and smiled at the toddler. _

"_No Teddy, don't worry about it. Uncle Ron was just being a doofus," Violet told him, and the amber eyed boy didn't take long to accept this answer. _

"_Come on, we should be meeting Vi's cousins now. We don't want to be too late," Hermione said, and they all got into the car Hermione rented for the occasion. _

_They would trick or treat around Surrey and then heading back to Dudley's house for tea before returning home. Though Violet would be hard pressed to admit it, this Halloween would actually be one of the fonder ones. _

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Present Day;**

**Konohagakure no Sato: **

Karin remembered her first day of class clearly, and it was from that experience she knew what to expect of her days at the Academy. The curriculum had been amended since Danzō's death and the Uchiha Massacre, but most changes wouldn't go through until her second year. Apparently taking back power from a corrupt civilian council was harder than one thought.

Karin didn't know much on the subject. She stayed away from politics as much as she could. It was why she had no problem what-so-ever with giving Naruto her place as the next clan head. She did know that Shisui and her sister complained about how annoying the council could be.

The Elders had actually been curved somewhat with Danzō's death, but even that couldn't last forever. The Uchiha Massacre may still be rather fresh in many people's memories, but Danzō's was beginning to fade into obscurity.

Karin felt he actually belonged there. She was protective of her family, and if there was one thing someone didn't do it was go after another Uzumaki. Family first, Duty second; it was what their parents had taught Karin and Sachi. What most Uzumaki believed as well.

Karin wasn't aware of why everyone seemed to dislike Naruto, or why his association to them and the announcement of the Uzumaki clan had caused the stir it had. Naruto wasn't the only one getting glares anymore, but Karin expertly ignored this. Possibly do to her lack of social skills.

Sachi was also blissfully ignoring this all, but her patience stopped when anyone threatened them, especially Naruto who garnered most of the villages scorn. She rarely lost her cool towards them, but there had been one instance when a grocer refused to sell them groceries at fair price, and even attempted to sell them close to or already rotted fruits, meats, and vegetables.

The mans last mistake was insulting their clan and Naruto specifically.

When Sachi was close to loosing her hold on her temper, which could be very violent, her eyes almost looked like they were glowing an eerie acidic emerald green. Sachi had smash her fist into the counter in front of her, cracking the surface and creating a small crater where her fist lay.

She'd barely gotten started tearing into the man, verbally at least. Thankfully Shisui was there to stop it from getting out of hand, but that was around the time Sachi decided to plant vegetables and fruits in the garden. Until they were grown and ready to eat they went to another grocer in the village, and had little trouble convincing him to sell them what they wanted fairly.

Karin figured Shisui had talked to the Hokage, who had made known his displeasure at what some stores in the village were trying to do. That and she thought that the news of Sachi's meltdown may have spread like wildfire.

From whispers some where comparing her to someone they called the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero. Others probably wouldn't pick something like this up, but Karin was always good at observing and listening. It helped that she had pretty good hearing, probably because once upon a time she was half-blind.

Despite the fact Naruto was mostly just ignored, pettily sold bad food for outrageous prices in the past, and had no friends thanks to the older generation telling their kids lies, no one had ever tried to seriously hurt him. The whispers behind his back, and glares had even gotten a little less since he moved in with Karin and Sachi.

Maybe because he was now recognized as a clan heir, and even civilians knew not to meddle in clans. Maybe it was because they were fearful of Sachi's temper, which had only really been seen once or twice, and other than a rare glare sent at a rude villager Sachi never appeared hostile to anyone. Karin knew her sister had a temper, but she also usually had pretty good control of it. She was kind to pretty much everyone unless given a reason not to be.

Karin tried to be like her sister as well, but she had a harder time controlling her temper and emotions. Her bright hair color, rare in Konoha and Fire Country in general, got her a lot of looks. The fact she was related to Naruto caused most to ignore her or treat her how their parents taught them to treat Naruto. It was beyond annoying. She wondered how Naruto could be so outgoing and kind living with this for eight years!

On the other end of things Karin had been a surprise to the whole class. At first it was hard for them to believe. This foreign girl with the shocking dark red hair was related to Naruto? The blonde, blue eyed, whisker-faced dead last? They looked very little like the other, if one did not count a somewhat rounded facial shape. Karin's eyes were an even brighter red than her hair, but only just.

It only took a day for the bullying to begin, or attempt to begin. Being called things such as monster's cousin, strawberry, apple, and tomato were beyond grating on her nerves, but she wouldn't give then the satisfaction of reacting to their words. She would day in and day out sit beside her slightly younger cousin and be the best student she could, while only acknowledging those who had any common sense (and of course Naruto).

Half of her class was made out of idiots. The other fraction consisted of fangirls - the mere thought was terrifying. Karin noticed how they acted towards Sasuke the first day he returned to class, and swore she'd never sink that low over a boy of all things.

An even smaller fraction of the class actually seemed to be there to learn to be competent Shinobi and Kunoichi. She made friends with a girl named Hinata, talked sometimes with Ino, but the girl was so far up Sasuke's butt it was amazing she could breath, and of course she had Naruto.

There were two other boys who were alright, Shin and Sai, but they were also socially dead inside – at least Sai was. Shin was different for sure. It was worse than her, and they'd appeared out of nowhere around the same time she had. It was odd. No one bothered asking though.

"Hey, Strawberry!" a smirking chubby boy shouted.

Karin instinctively looked up from her bento. It was something she'd had to pack herself since Sachi was still on her mission. It had been about two weeks now and she was starting to get a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"What do you want!?" Naruto growled, narrowing his eyes at the bullies that did this almost every day. He hated how they treated his cousin, someone who was like an older sister to him. Even if she was a bit dull at times.

"Naruto..." Karin muttered, but didn't stop gazing at the bullies in front of her with narrowed red eyes.

"Stay out of this," another sneered at Naruto and the leader, a boy called Taiki, smirked wider.

"How does it feel to be the cousin of a demon, Uzumaki?" Taiki asked, and Naruto's fist clinched while Karin felt her temper rising.

After weeks of this bullshit she was just about at her patiences limit. Yori, the second boy laughed, and with a kick sent Naruto and Karin's food into the dirt. The food she'd slaved over a stove to get just right.

Closing her eyes she counted to ten, remembering what Sachi had told her about how she held her temper in check and why she trained so much after a hard day. Unfortunately she had no such outlet right now. She couldn't just stroll out of the Academy grounds to the compound and train to get her anger out.

"Haha, is the monster going to cry?" Taiki's words reached her, and then the sound of feet. Naruto's raged outcry followed, and then the sound of a body crashing into the ground. With a hiss Karin's eyes snapped opened and she saw Naruto on the ground holding his stomach, Taiki and Yori above him laughing.

"What are you gonna do, Strawberry?" Yori asked, noticing she'd stood from her place. "You're just a girl..."

He never saw it coming. One moment Karin was standing with her fist clenched at her side and the next her right hook met his chin, lifting him up and back, skidding across the ground. Her eyes moved to a stunned Taiki next and her foot collided with his kidney, throwing him to the ground where he laid holding his side.

"Don't ever hurt my cousin again!" Karin yelled, breathing hard as she stood protectively in front of Naruto. "Or I'll gut you both like rabbits!"

Both scrambled to their feet, and holding their hands up in surrender they ran for it - still holding onto their injuries. She snorted, she didn't even think she'd hit them that hard. Helping Naruto back to his feet, though he hardly look hurt anymore, Karin smiled but it soon fell when they caught sight of Iruka-sensei heading towards them.

He looked rather disapproving.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Tōsui Village: **

Undercover missions were probably some of the most dangerous, especially when it was in the middle of a civil war zone. At the same time it was boring, and a bored Sachi (or Uzumaki in general) was never a good thing.

Usually she'd resort to fūinjutsu or training to alleviate boredom, but when she was on a mission as a civilian with no shinobi background she had no choice but to find other outlets. She became even more compulsive than before, the house she and her teammates rented for 10,000 ryō (which was actually rather cheap for the location and size of the house) was never with a spot of dirt. A garden tried and mostly failed to bloom, much to her dismay, and she was almost always seen wondering the markets around the village.

By the end of the two week mark, with very little information about the Mizukage and his plans, she was going stir crazy, and she was pretty sure Genma and Aoba weren't fairing much better. Most shinobi hated being, though they weren't necessarily apposed to vacations and rest. They were on a mission though, and that meant they were commonly always on edge even if they hide it well.

They did drawl a little attention. With black hair it was easier to pass them off as three siblings looking for a place to settle down after their parents death. Most wouldn't settle down in Water Country of all places, but playing it off like dumb civilians unaware of the civil war took care of that – though Sachi had to wonder how many actually bought these excuses. Almost everyone knew of the civil war, she and Karin knew and they had been nomads their whole life before settling in Konoha.

In two weeks they had learned little. There was talk that Yagura wanted to extend the civil war outside of the Land of Water. They were unsure as of yet if it was true or just tall tales told by frightened citizens. Fear that even escaping the country all together would no longer be safe. Sachi was brought from her thoughts by a hand on her elbow. She was holding a bag of groceries in the same arm, and returning back from keeping herself occupied.

"Oh, Utatori-san you're alright then... I am glad," said a woman who had been friendly to the supposed siblings since their arrival. She was also rather into gossip so she was a good source of information, even if most was inconsequential to the mission and Sachi.

Utatori Midoriko was the name she was going by while in Tōsui Village, it was too much of a risk to use their real names. Between the Bingo Book – though Sachi herself was not in it, she wasn't sure about Genma or Aoba – and just rumors of them from previous missions it was best (and routine) to take on a whole new identity.

Sachi blinked.

"What do you mean? Of course I am alright," she said, and Suzuki as haughty and gossiping as she usually was actually looked concerned and pitying.

That easily concerned her, as long as she'd known the woman she'd never had more than a few expressions. Smug, haughty, and the ever common I-know-something-you-don't-know.

"I was just minding my own business, when I noticed shinobi heading in the direction of your home. I mean I could be wrong... but it was the general direction..." She blinked when she realized Sachi had dropped her groceries, and taken off towards her home at a pace just a little faster than any civilian should be able to use.

"Huh, strange girl," she muttered before heading on her way.

**.**

**.**

**.**

While she ran her hands were a blur of speed as she activated a minor genjutsu to hide her presence. She wasn't even there when she heard the sounds of battle, and yells from neighbors and bystanders.

Aware of someone coming at her with ill intent she pivoted to the right, her leg impacting into a Kiri-nin's abdomen. He was recovered and up before she could even analyse the situation completely. Genma and Aoba were fighting a group a few feet away, and now she was caught by her own group of ninja. They circled around her life wolves to prey.

"So, what are Konoha ninja doing in Water Country?" Yuu, the one she'd kicked forcing her to drop her genjutsu, asked.

Her eyes widened. How had they known!? They had been so careful. They played the part of civilians nearly perfectly, and never let anything slip. Her long braid flew in the air as she attacked the closest ninja to her.

Her kick sailed over his head, but she used her agility and flexibility to her advantage and her fist was planted into his stomach hardly a second later. She followed it up with a chop to the back of the neck, seeing as she was in the perfect position to do so.

The fight escalated from there. Handling a group of Kiri-nin of varying and unknown level was hardly easily. She received just as many hits as she gave, and though she was a mid-close range fighter, she was forced to go on the defense and keep her distance as much as possible.

"Genma, Aoba!" she called in warning as she went through only three hand signs. "Katon: Yūreibi (Fire Release: Ghost Fire)."

The wide spread fire jutsu expanded as it hit the oxygen in the air, the flames themselves turning almost transparent white in their intense heat. Genma and Aoba avoided it easily with the shouted warning before hand, as did some of the Kiri-nin, but some were just too slow, too close, or two stupid to know a warning when they heard one. They were reduced to smouldering skeletons.

Genma smirked, but was also impressed. He'd never seen anyone able to get their fire jutsu so hot they turned white before. Not even the Uchiha, and they were known to have very high natural affinities for fire; Followed by the Sarutobi clan. Aoba was in much the same thought process.

"Great job, Sachi," Genma said.

Sachi breathed heavily, and her form flickered before disappearing from view. She reappeared closer to her teammates, her knee bent and thrust into a Kiri-nin's back. Genma and Aoba went back into the fray of things as well, and before long the Konoha-nin and remaining Kiri-nin were a blur of colors and limbs to those without ninja training.

Sachi breathed heavily as she was forced to deactivate her invisibility seal, which was always on her wrist. Though it was a huge advantage, advanced enough senses could still notice where she was. Some of these Kiri-nin, Yuu for instance, had enough skill to detect her by shifts in the air, and sounds she made just by moving around.

It seemed for every Kiri-nin they defeated another popped up like a cockroach. It only took then ten minutes - give or take - to realize the Mizukage was ransacking Tōsui Village. From the screams and flames covering the village it was hard to miss.

"W-why are you doing this?" Sachi couldn't help but ask, blocking a down-swing of a katana with her crossed flaming arms. The blade still cut into her arms, but thanks to moving her chakra in just the right way and the flames she didn't loose a limb.

Yuu snorted. "This isn't a movie or story, girl. I don't plan on telling you the Mizukage's plans or motivations."

She disappeared in a Fire Shunshin and once again was met by three to four ninja readying themselves to finish her. She thanked her Uzumaki stamina and reserves she wasn't on the ground yet. She could tell Genma and Aoba were tiring quickly now, and she was starting to feel it herself. She continued to hold her own, using everything she could to take out those she fought. Yuu was relentless and skilled, and by far gave her the biggest challenge.

Others varied, some fought like genin, others chūnin, and then there were those with the obvious skill of jōnin's. They gave her the biggest problem. She was only one person, even when using the Raiton Kage Bunshin (which were only so useful). Her chains would give away exactly who she was, since only an Uzumaki could materialize chakra chains... but soon enough she recognized that she had no choice. It was either risk her heritage coming to light or die.

She'd not had her tantō on her to begin with, so she had begun the fight with one disadvantage already. Soon she had chains waving behind her like tails, defending her back as if they had a mind of their own. Chains appeared to wrap around her body, protecting vital areas. Around her hands and fist chains made her punches even more painful, and she could use the crescent-like kunai ends like any other kunai. The protrusions like thorns along the chain-links added to her defense.

It made attacking her harder, but not impossible.

The constant use of her chains drained her even more, especially after how long she'd used the invisibility seal for taking it out of her. A normal shinobi probably would have dropped exhaustion by now.

Spinning in a complete circle she channelled chakra into the kunai ends of her chains. "Kazakama (Wind Scythe)!"

Crescent shaped blades of wind blasted out around her, some hitting their targets, others making crescent fissures in the ground.

"You're better than I anticipated, but I also didn't think you were an Uzumaki," Yuu said, wiping blood from his cut face.

Then he was gone. Sachi gasped loudly, blood and spit flying from her mouth as his fist impacted with her stomach. It was like he didn't even care for the chains wrapped around her body, and it caused her chains to dig into her stomach with the force of his punch. She felt a foot hit her in the side of the head and she slid across the torn up ground with a groan.

Many of her chains disappeared into golden-silver particles, but a few remained, defending her where she could not. Grumbling, Sachi was on her feet and right back in the fight seconds later. She never even noticed her hair had returned to its vibrant red from her use of her chakra, nor it coming loose of it braid.

She refused to give up, and soon there were only a handful of Kiri-nin still fighting the Konoha ninja. The village was even more destroyed than before. Genma's shout of pain, and Aoba's shocked cry was all it took for Sachi to drop her guard and realize her mistake only seconds too late. She'd instinctively looked over to her comrades only to see Genma on the ground with a blade in his chest, and Aoba having been knocked into a crumbling building.

That was all it took for Yuu to get in multiple hits. Punches to her face, stomach, and chest before kicking her into the ground. Senbon rained down into her body as she tried to get up, and her eyes widened. She didn't use senbon, but getting to know Genma had taught her a few things about them.

There were few ways to kill with senbon, but the more skilled a person was with them the easier it became. She wasn't dying... but she sure felt like it. Blood trickled down her chin and she collapsed back onto the ground. Her remaining chains were gone, and her body spent of energy. She could barely keep her eyes open, she couldn't speak any words.

_'Poison...' _she thought to herself, but she couldn't be sure despite her skill in the area. At this point she was barely conscious. She let out an almost silent scream when a kick flipped her over onto her back, forcing some senbon deeper into her body.

"That was some fight," Yuu muttered, and the last thing she saw was the sky clouded by the smoke and Yuu's satisfied face before her eyes closed.

"The Mizukage will be happy at the missions success," a limping Kiri-nin muttered while approaching.

Yuu nodded before slinging the redhead over his shoulder none to gently.

"Let's go Nobuyuki, we've got what we came for."


	9. Wrong Side Of Heaven Part I

**AN: I'm glad everyone enjoyed the last chapter. After this chapter it might take me a bit to get the next chapter written and finished. The fight that follows will be one of the hardest I write as of yet. There was a guest who voiced concern that I made Sachi seem to week. I did not, in my opinion. **

**She may have the experience of a past life behind her, but she lacks the weapon she fought with back then - magic. She has to rely on chakra and what she's learned from her parents and developed herself. She is only sixteen, and while powerful (the reason I made her a Tokubetsu Jonin) she still has a ways to go. There were circumstances that led her to be in the situation she's in now. **

**First they were ambushed out of the blue, near the end of their mission. They had not expected this, and most of the Kiri-nin went straight for them since taking Sachi was their mission. They separated the Konoha ninja so they could not effectively work together, knowing it was one of the reasons Konoha was so strong - their teamwork. **

**They grouped up on them after that so they had five or more ninja on them at all times. It was a loosing situation, and at the end Sachi got distracted, and Yuu and another ninja took the opportunity to capture her. In any case I did put her in a damsel-in-distress sort of situation, but that doesn't mean she's gonna stay in it. Though it wont be easy for her to get out of it, and you'll find out why this chapter. **

**I hope you all enjoy it. **

**Meddling In Fate. **

**Chapter 9: Wrong Side Of Heaven ****Part I****. **

"Where is she?" Shisui demanded glaring harshly at the shorter Mizukage. His usually black eyes shinned crimson with the Mangekyō Sharingan. His knuckles turned white by the grip he kept on his ninjatō.

"So that's the great Uchiha Shisui's reason for storming the Bloody Mist? A girl?" Yagura laughed. "How the mighty have fallen."

**.**

**.**

**.**

Genma groaned, his eyes opening slowly and adjusting to the harsh light. His first thoughts were on the fact he was still alive. He'd been positive he'd die from the wound he'd suffered.

He was pretty sure only two people could have healed such damage so close to his heart, Senju Tsunade or Sachi. Yet when he tried to move he found it nearly impossible, his body hurt too much.

The pain he could get through, he was a ninja and most have high pain tolerances, but his body felt heavy. As if it were numbed, probably from some form of pain killers given to him by whoever had healed him. Worst case scenario he was captured by Kiri-nin and it was actually a tranquillizer keeping him mostly immobile.

"S-sachi?" he croaked out, but there was no answer. "Sachi... you around?"

"Genma, you're finally up," Aoba said, and Genma looked at the spiky haired man startled.

As long as he'd known Aoba he'd never seen him without his sunglasses. He could only assume they'd been destroyed in the battle, and that was the reason gray eyes could be seen. Aoba had bandages wrapped around his arm, and around his chest were bandages barely seen through the mesh armor. Genma noticed he was also bandaged, more severely than his teammate.

Looking around he failed to find Sachi and a rock dropped into the pit of his gut. He remembered the fight, and everything about it just didn't sit right. He'd been positive none of them had let their true intentions in the village out.

Sachi was probably the best at pretending to be a normal civilian. Possibly because of how she'd grown up. That meant either he or Aoba had slipped up somewhere in the last two weeks or there was another leak... and the attack on the village hadn't been random at all. They were searching for someone. He hoped his theory was wrong.

"Aoba, where's Sachi?" he asked, forcing himself into a sitting position. The muscles in his chest and arm protested but he expertly ignored them.

"She was captured," Aoba admitted with a sigh of regret. "You've been out for three days. Your wounds were more severe than mine."

"Which is amazing, considering you had part of a building fall on you," an unknown female said from the entrance to the room.

The woman was tall, curvy, of slender build, and had ankle-length, auburn hair styled into a herringbone pattern at the back, one of four bangs covering her right eye. Leaving the left in view and a bottle green. She wore a dark blue, low cut, battle kimono.

She wore mesh armor under the kimono that covers slightly more of her upper body than her kimono. A black skirt under the kimono could be seen because of the long slit on the kimono that went from her left hip down. Around her waist was an ivory belt with a pouch attached to the back on the left, and she wore high-heeled boots on her feet.

She couldn't be older than her early twenties. She stood with an older man, wearing common hunter-nin clothes for Kirigakure Shinobi, and an eye patch.

"Who are you, where are we?" Genma demanded, instantly suspicious.

The woman chuckled. "There is no need to be hostile, we're here to help. We arrived to search for survivors of the purge only to find you two. We realized instantly you were shinobi from your wounds, no civilian would have survived or had such defensive wounds."

"They questioned me when I woke. They're the resistance group we were briefed on before our mission," Aoba informed Genma.

Wavering Genma nodded, He trusted Aoba's words, and if they were still alive and not locked up in a dingy cell then he couldn't see many more options left. Even the Mizukage wouldn't be so arrogant as to heal foreign ninja and leave them relatively free to move around.

"I guess we should thank you then," he said. "Do you know where our third teammate would have been taken?"

"You're welcome, and though you didn't bother to ask," she began, "my name is Terumī Mei, and this is my best ninja, Ao."

Genma nods and says, "I apologize, but right now our teammate is either dead or getting close with every passing second."

Mei pursed her lips together but nodded. She understood perfectly. Her shinobi had been in similar situations before. Aoba had been just as concerned even if he wasn't as demanding as Genma was being.

"That depends. We believe the village was targeted, usually that only occurs when bloodline users are being hidden there, but this time we think your teammate was the target. We don't know why, this is unusual for Yagura. We do know it means she was most likely taken back to Kirigakure." Mei sighed, catching her breath before continuing. "The good news is they probably only reached Kiri late last night."

"Great, at least we can assume she's alive," said Genma, his bandaged hand holding onto his head. He'd been put in situations like this before, what seasoned ninja hadn't been, but this situation was more serious then any of those past experiences. "We need to plan our next move, Aoba."

"We do..."

"You wont get into Kirigakure, I'm afraid to say your friend is on borrowed time. Yagura has a way of knowing everything within fifty miles of the village. Your best bet is to throw in the towel," Ao said firmly, his face blank of emotion. The glares Genma and even Aoba sent his way didn't even cause a flinch.

Mei's eye twitched, hearing something completely different from what he'd actually said.

"Ao, shut up or I'll kill you," she snapped, and turned her attention back to the two glaring Konoha ninja. "For a price the rebellion is willing to lend you our aid in putting together a rescue mission."

Aoba raised an eyebrow. "What kind of price are you asking?"

"Nothing outrageous, in my opinion. We've heard rumors of your recent clan massacre. I simply ask for a few supplies shipped to us when we need them, and a few medic-nin to if nothing else teach some of my ninja to be medics better than a book can. In return we'll help you get this Sachi girl back, and in the future we can talk about an alliance between Kiri and Konoha," she replied.

Genma and Aoba exchanged glances, honestly it was a pretty good deal, but at the same time they were giving the rebellion more than they'd receive. An alliance couldn't take place until after Yagura was dead after all. Then there was no telling when that would be, added to the expenses of giving them supplies. Konoha wasn't in dire straights as far as the economy went, but usually trade agreements went both ways.

Aoba shook his head.

"Slow down. I want to save Sachi as well," Aoba said, looking at Genma with a serious expression. "She's our comrade, our friend even, but we need to report back to the Hokage. Who knows what his orders will be. Invading Kiri, even to retrieve one of our own, could start a war. Maybe even the next great war."

Genma clinched his fist at his side, knowing Aoba was right. He didn't want to abandon his comrade though, there were few times he had to in the past. Sometimes comrades and friends died on missions, but the few times someone had been captured he'd been able to work with his remaining teammates to retrieve them.

Sachi was a good Kunoichi, maybe even one of the best Konoha had at the moment. If she were to become a medic-nin he was positive she'd be the best medic Konoha had to offer next to the Slug Sannin. Other than her importance to Konoha as a ninja she also had a sister and adopted ward waiting for her at home. He dreaded having to tell them their older sister was dead. Narrowing his eyes he made up his mind.

"You go back to Konoha alone, Aoba," he said sternly.

"What?" he asked, startled. "Why?"

"Well for one I'm too injured to make the journey," he began, though it was obvious Aoba didn't buy his excuse, not completely. "I won't abandon Sachi to Kiri, and I think the Hokage will agree with me when I say there is too much at stake to lose her to them."

Maybe it was a bit cold to think of it that way, but while it wasn't his main motivation he knew with Sachi it was too much of a risk for Kirigakure to get their hands on her. Dead or alive. She was an Uzumaki, with special chakra unseen before, and there were plenty of reasons a hidden village would target her.

How they realized who she was during the mission, particularly with the changes she'd applied so it wouldn't be obvious, he had no idea.

Aoba nodded.

"You can leave as soon as you're ready," Mei told Aoba. "We'll leave you both to discuss your course of action. Let me know soon so I can ready my own shinobi." Mei and Ao left the room, leaving two sullen ninja behind.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Two days later Aoba made it back to Konoha. He had raced back as quickly as he could, knowing that every passing minute didn't bode well for Sachi's well being. He went straight to the Hokage's office, not caring that he had interrupted a meeting between the Sandaime and his now two advisers.

After the advisers had left, though they appeared reluctant to do so at first, Aoba stood in front of the Sandaime grimly.

"Aoba, you may speak freely. What's the situation?" Hiruzen asked, already figuring out something had gone wrong since neither Genma or Sachi were with the man. Then there was his lack of sunglasses and sign of a recent fight.

"The mission was going smoothly, we were nearly ready to return to Konoha with our findings when Tōsui Village was attacked by Kiri-nin. They seemed to know who we were, Hokage-sama. The battle was intense, we were separated from each other." Aoba hung his head.

"And what of your teammates?"

"Genma was critically injured, and has remaining behind. Sachi... has been captured by enemy ninja sir. We believe the village was attacked not to search for bloodline refuges, but for Sachi. It's possible we slipped up or there is a leak somewhere," Aoba answered. "Genma and I were saved by members of the Kirigakure Rebellion."

Hiruzen frowned deeply. This was the worst that could have happened, and on a mission that was supposed to be rather simple. It was why he had sent Tokubetsu Jōnin. No matter how Kiri found out who they were, the fact remained two of them were injured and the third was captured. The fact it was Uzumaki Sachi was worrying. There could be many reasons Yagura wanted Sachi.

The Uzumaki were not counted among most as a bloodline clan, despite their special chakra and longevity. They had been feared enough to be destroyed though. Now the idea of having an Uzumaki was rather coveted. They were slippery, and though Hiruzen believed their to be a few more than Sachi, Naruto and Karin still out there they were wonderful at remaining anonymous and hidden.

Karin and Sachi were probably the last pure-blooded Uzumaki's though. Kumo had tried this with Kushina, though it appeared Kiri had succeeded where Kumo had failed. This left him with a hard choice. If he assembled some ninja to invade Kiri and retrieve the Uzumaki clan head than war could start between Kiri and Konoha, which could easily spread to Iwa and Kumo.

It could easily start the Fourth Shinobi War. If he did nothing though he'd have to deal with the fallout of it. If Yagura didn't kill Sachi, he could easily use her to breed more Uzumaki who may or may not inherit her healing ability and chains.

Hiruzen sighed, lowering his head as he nodded. He knew what had to be done.

"Hokage-sama..." Aoba began, but he was interrupted when Hiruzen raised his head.

"We do nothing... not yet at least," Hiruzen said. "Go to the hospital and have yourself looked at. I will see about putting together a rescue team."

Aoba nodded and left seconds later, a poorly hidden look of relief on his face.

"ANBU, get me Nara Shikaku, Hatake Kakashi, Uchiha Shisui, and two ANBU Squads," he said, and his only sign that he'd been heard was the hidden ANBU leaving the room.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"What!?" Shisui shouted, eyes wide.

"Kirigakure has captured Uzumaki Sachi. For what reason is unknown at this time. What's known is that they have taken her back to Kirigakure, and Terumī Mei, leader of the Kirigakure Rebellion, has agreed to help us should we attack Kiri to get Sachi back."

"Of course we're going to attack them! They have one of our own!" Shisui exclaimed, eyes cold.

Kakashi sighed, placing a hand on the younger mans shoulder to calm him down. He too was upset over the whole thing, and wanted to rush out to help retrieve Sachi, but he saw what was left unsaid. Attacking Kiri was dangerous.

Not only could they fail, but if they didn't fail they might start a war. It came down to how important Sachi was to Konoha, as horrible as it sounded. In times like this there wasn't much choice, thankfully this kind of situation didn't happen very often. Not as dire as this at least. Not since the attempted kidnapping of the Hyūga heiress.

"It's not that easy," Shikaku said. "There are things to think about. Getting into Kiri wont be easy, we at least have the support of the rebellion to find the village which is well hidden. We'll have to send some of our best ninja to get this done, and on the chance we fail that leaves Konoha vulnerable."

Hiruzen sighed and nodded. "True. We must retrieve Uzumaki Sachi from Kirigakure, and hope for the best outcome. I will prepare for the worst while the mission is underway. Genma is already with the rebellion, and Aoba will lead you back to them."

"You want us all to go?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes. I will also be sending Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Chōza to complete the Ino–Shika–Chō trio. Shikaku will lead this mission, Kakashi you will take over should something happen. Two ANBU teams will be sent with you. Tenzō will lead the two ANBU squads combined."

The assembled ninja nodded, eight of which were dressed in ANBU attire, masks and all.

"You'll leave tonight. We can not afford to lose much more time. Shisui stay behind please," Hiruzen said, and the others left leaving only Shisui behind.

"Shisui, I am aware of how close you and Sachi have become. This won't become a problem during this mission I hope," Hiruzen said, and Shisui skillfully wiped his face clean of any emotion.

"No, Hokage-sama," he said monotonously.

"Good. Before you leave, I believe this may have to do with the masked man Sachi reported encountering during the Massacre."

Shisui's eyes widened marginally for a second. He remembered her mentioning him, but no matter how they searched they never found any trace of another shinobi in the compound. There was no sign of him anywhere else either.

"I see," he said. "If that is all?"

"Yes. You may go."

He bowed out of respect before leaving.

**.**

**.**

**.**

She woke after five days. Sachi assumed she would have woken sooner if not for the Death-Like state they'd put her in, and the drugs to keep her unconscious until they reached what she assumed to be a dungeon in Kirigakure.

She woke in a dimly lit cell, chained to the wall. Her kimono was torn from the fight and she could also feel old injuries from it as well, but otherwise she felt no different. She assumed they'd done nothing to her while she was unconscious, which was a relief to her. She'd been told of the dangers being captured brought from her mother.

Twisting her wrist to test the chains, she groaned at the tightness of them. Whoever had attached them was leaving no room for error. Great, she hated competent bad guys. She wondered how they expected her to go to the bathroom without being able to move her hands very far from the wall they were chained to.

She had already spotted a bucket close by, which had her wrinkling her nose. She knew what that was for. She couldn't help but chuckle bitterly at how terribly cliché this whole thing was. The cell even had a leak somewhere because she could hear the sound of water drops hitting the stone floor.

Maybe this was some sort of physiological torture. It would probably have worked on someone else, but she'd lived through too much to let some stupid dank cell drive her crazy. Twisting her wrist more she brought her hands together, forming hand seals very carefully.

She hissed at the feeling of her chakra pooling and going nowhere. It was as if someone had placed a dam in the way, she could feel it but she couldn't use it. Trying to hurt like a burning cramp, or maybe that was just from the position she was forced into.

"I wouldn't try that if I were you."

Sachi raised her head, noticing for the first time the shadowed figure outside her cell. The person was short, so short she thought he couldn't be much older than her sister and Naruto. His eyes and the scar on his face ruined the image though and she realized he had to be older. Probably older than herself.

"Why not?"

"Seals were placed to stop the use of your chakra. The more you try the more pain it causes your body, too much and it would be like an electrical shock and could become fatal," he said, smirking. "My name is Yagura..."

Sachi narrowed her eyes. "You're the Mizukage."

"Correct."

Craning her neck and glancing around she noticed the seals on her arms. They were inked in bold black and she wondered how she'd missed them before, but she chalked it up to just waking up and being more concerned with getting out. They were rather advanced seals, but it would take her longer than a look to decipher them completely. If she could get a better look at them there was the possibility she could break them down. It would take time and probably be painful if they did what Yagura said. Just from a glance it did look that way.

"Great, just great," she muttered.

So she was at an impasse. Her first thought was to use her reverse summoning seal to bring herself to the Uzumaki Storage Mask Temple, but with these seals covering her and blocking off her chakra she was helpless. Gods, she missed magic.

"Get comfortable," Yagura said suddenly, his voice suddenly a bit deeper, but she could also still hear his own voice under the deeper one. It was echoing... that made no sense! She thought with a start. "You won't be leaving."

From behind him she saw the outline of a shadowed figure. A familiar mask was outlined from the shadows and light that was given mostly by torches on the walls. A Sharingan spun in the one visible eye. Then everything just went black for her, and her head slumped forward.

_Madara _watched as Yagura left, his usefulness over at the moment, and turned back to look at the Uzumaki chained to the wall. Her hair fell in front of her face, the black dye she'd attempted to disguise herself with gone. She sat with her knees tucked under her, and it pooled on the stone floor like blood.

This time she wouldn't escape him.

**.**

**.**

**.**

The entire time Shisui raced to the Rebellion's base in Water Country his thoughts didn't stray far from Sachi. In the time he knew her she really had become his friend, a best friend even. She would listen if he needed to talk, and was always happy to heal anyone who needed it. It was why she stopped by the hospital occasionally.

Some wondered why she bothered working at the Yamanaka's flower shop, but he knew it was simply an outlet. As ninja they fought for their life nearly on a daily basis, they killed hundreds by the time they finally landed themselves in the grave. They needed an outlet of some sort or they'd go insane. Kakashi had his porn books, while his tardy behavior and excuses kept him even more grounded and reminded him what he still fought for.

He couldn't speak for the others. For him he had his clan, his more laid back attitude was born from a need to keep himself from going insane when he gained the Mangekyō Sharingan. His pranks had also been an outlet of sorts, though he no longer turned to them often – usually only when he was helping Naruto out. That kid had a talent with pranks, more so than himself. He lived for his precious ones, and along the way Sachi had earned her place amongst them.

He assumed working at the flower shop when she wasn't on a mission kept her happy, and from over thinking the lives she took. Visiting the hospital did the same, and helped the guilt she surely had. They were after all human, and they only stopped being human when they took pleasure from their jobs and the lives it took.

"You need to think clearly during this mission, Shisui," Tenzō said from his side, and he only knew it was said man through his mask and voice. As cold as he sounded Shisui knew he was right.

"Right," he muttered as they continued running along the wet terrain.

They ran into no resistance during their travel, which was both concerning and a relief. Once there they were led to Genma and the Rebellion leader. The leader was with a few of her subordinates. The young redhead who had led them to the room shut the door behind them as they entered, remaining with the group of thirty to thirty-five ninja. Considering how many ninja Yagura could have it was a puny number, but it would have to do.

"I'm glad you made it," Mei said, nodding at the ninja Konoha had sent.

She recognized some of them from the Bingo book and wondered how important this girl was to them. She must have been well off in Konoha, a regular ninja wouldn't have been given such a rescue party. She noticed Ao shift at her side, his eye locked on a man with unkempt black hair and black eyes. An Uchiha, she thought. Seeing as Ao recognized him he could only be Shunshin no Shisui.

"I'm Nara Shikaku, the leader of the Konoha ninja present. I assume you are Terumī Mei."

Mei nodded.

"I am. We should go over plans. We can't rush into this. Honoka here is our fūinjutsu expert, and a budding scientist. She may be with us when we attack Kirigakure." Mei motioned to the redhead who'd escorted them there.

Her dark eyes were rather hard, and though she seemed somewhat cheerful it was obvious things she'd seen had hardened her. She hardly seemed older then thirteen. She was younger than any of them at least.

"I see. That may come in handy. There is no saying what they've got holding Sachi back. She is quite the kunoichi, there is a certain seal she knows that should have gotten her out of there instantly. If she hasn't done so yet than there must be a reason," Shisui spoke, a grim frown on his face.

Honoka's eyes flashed over at the mention of the name, a look on her face that was suspiciously like recognition. She thought about speaking, but kept her mouth shut.

What were the chances it was the same Sachi?


	10. Wrong Side Of Heaven Part II

.

.

.

"_**War is the place where life and death meet." - The Art of War, Sun Tzu.**_

**Meddling In Fate. **

**Chapter 10: Wrong Side Of Heaven Part II. **

**Kirigakure no Sato;**

**Sixth Day: **

Sachi woke from her Sharingan induced sleep sometime the next morning. Her neck was stiff and she wanted nothing more than to rub the sleep from her eyes. Once everything came back to her, Sachi groaned and moved her wrist experimentally.

She had no hope the chains were old enough to be broken by sheer force, and without chakra she simply wasn't strong enough to break them without them already being weak from age and rust. She realized quickly these chains were well cared for, they had not been sloppy when they imprisoned her.

How she missed the days of incompetent villains. If this had been a Death Eater she probably wouldn't have even been chained up. They'd have chucked her in a dungeon cell and disarmed her before walking off for hours. She wasn't positive but she thought she heard the shuffling of feet near the exit, or maybe even outside the exit. A guard.

"Come on, think Uzumaki," she muttered to herself, craning her neck to stare at the chains binding her to the wall and the seals binding her chakra tight.

She would have to go back to her first plan, breaking down the seals. It was child's play to an Uzumaki, usually, but she was still not on the level where she felt comfortable calling it child's play for herself. She was still studying fūinjutsu while teaching Karin and Naruto what she already knew.

Some Uzumaki were talented in creating seals, others at deciphering what made seals tick, and then there were those who specialized in breaking them down and recreating them. She was good at creating and wasn't too shabby at deconstructing them.

Deciphering seals could take some time though, some fūinjutsu users had a kind of short-hand that made that seal formula unique to them. This stopped others from stealing their seals. It was one of the reasons when someone looked at a seal with a spiral it was usually Uzumaki made, it was like a calling card with hidden traps.

Then there were the universal seals which everyone who knew anything about fūinjutsu used, if she was lucky that was what she was dealing with. Those who knew what they were doing could make these seals unique by adding and tweaking things, but if they were novice and tried this they'd probably sooner blow themselves up. That happened a lot with fūinjutsu.

Whoever had written the seals on her arms – a common place for seals to be applied for cutting off chakra, since one used their hands to channel the life energy – wasn't a novice. If they continued to study they'd become even better, maybe on the level of Jiraiya of the Sannin. As it was they couldn't outmaneuver an Uzumaki.

There were two flaws with these seals. One, they were in plain sight. If it was a simple oversight on their part or not she didn't care. It gave her a better chance of breaking them down, but the Mizukage was right. The more she struggled to use her chakra the more pain she was put in, an electrical current forced through her body. It could be fatal, but she had to try.

Sachi had no intention of waiting for a rescue team that might not even be sent. The other glaring flaw in these seals was the fact they were really well made seals that any fūinjutsu user worth their art knew. The only thing added was the array to shock her the more she tried to use her chakra, and that would be the first part of the array to go. It would take the most time to unravel, if she made one wrong move she could seriously electrocute herself. Sachi wished she had more than the light that came through a small window and the torches.

If worse came to worst, Sachi would use the already drawn seals as a base, tweak them, and create a bomb so powerful she'd blow herself and the area she was locked up into an ashy crater. She didn't want to resort to that, she couldn't imagine leaving Karin and Naruto alone. Sighing, Sachi took a calming breath and once again craned her neck to memorize the seals.

A few minutes later she closed her eyes and began manipulating her chakra. She wasn't truly trying to expel it like one would do for a ninjutsu or genjutsu, but the seals still reacted as they should. However, with some time and pain she would be free of her restraints.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Seventh Day:**

On the seventh day of her confinement she seriously thought they were trying to kill her. She'd gone just over a week without food and only a small cup of water a day. Her empty stomach was causing her to lose energy and concentration.

Every time someone came to check on her she had to stop her progress with the seals, and try not to look like she'd gone ten rounds with Pikachu (she was sure the reference would be lost on the ninja). It was on the seventh day she saw an unwelcome familiar face. He just popped up out of nowhere, and she barely had a few seconds to stop messing with the seals before he phased through her cell bars.

She bit her lip and prayed he didn't come too close, or pay attention to the fading seals on her arms. The only reason no one had noticed yet was how slow the process was and the fact none had gotten close to her. She was in a rather low-lit area.

"Ah, I'm glad to see you're still alive," he said, his voice just as deep as she recalled. She glared, and then noticed the tray with what looked like soup and bread. Her mouth watered. She looked up startled at the mans sudden laughter. "I apologize, your need for food was... overlooked."

Somehow she didn't believe him. Not completely at least. He moved closer, so close she could see the detail of his orange spiral mask. She moved back against the brick wall in a flash, shocked he'd gotten so close to her. Her heart beat erratically in her chest, her mind yelling that any moment he'd know what she'd been doing.

He was someone dangerous, the one behind this, and he wouldn't be so easily fooled. She didn't know when it really hit her that the Mizukage was just a puppet, controlled by this unknown Uchiha, but it made the reality of her situation clearer.

Tobi tilted his head to the side, and chuckled. "You don't need to fear me, Sachi-san. Tobi is a good boy."

Her eyes widened more and she was conflicted. His voice had fluctuated between it's deep baritone and a more boyish, childish, tone. Both confused and frightened her, but she would not show it more than she already had. She turned her head away from him and glared at the wall.

"Why are you here?" she demanded coldly, her voice cracking from lack of water and regular conversation.

"As I said, you need to eat. Water will keep you alive, but you're already losing weight. Before long you'll be flesh and bones." Tobi flopped down with a childish air in front of her, and held up the spoon overflowing with heated soup (and not the appetizing kind, this looked like some kind of broth). "Open wide for the chew-chew..."

she wasn't sure whether to be frightened, insulted, or laugh at this mans – Tobi, she recalled – absurd behavior.

Her twisting stomach told her one truth, she'd eventually have no choice but to play along since she didn't have the movement to feed herself.

_How degrading, _she thought bitterly.

**.**

**.**

**.**

He stayed in her cell for well over an hour, part of that time struggling to get her to eat. She smirked thinking about his annoyed huff when she refused the food at first. No amount of train or boat sounds worked. Soon she was so weak and hungry she had no choice but to accept being fed by the man who had ordered her capture.

While he fed her soup and bread he talked to her. She didn't understand what he was thinking. One minute he was childish, and the next he was serious and threatening. By the time he left she had an idea of what he was after. Either he was part of something bigger than controlling the Mizukage, or he was after her for the fact she was an Uzumaki.

Uzumaki were known for their fūinjutsu, feared for it even. Their skill was unparalleled and their special chakra was even more coveted, and she was more unique with her healing abilities having manifested from her special chakra. Uzumaki's were also the perfect candidate for jinchūriki, even at her age. So either he wanted to use her or kill her. Any one of these theories didn't bode well for her.

He returned that night with a cup of water.

"Hm, looks like I'll have to get one of the guards to clean your toilet," he muttered, glancing next to her in disdain.

His eyes were locked on what he called a toilet, but what she called a crap basket, as he spoke. That was basically what it was; it was barely a bucket. It was beginning to stink too. She'd had no choice but to use it, though. It was either that or go on herself, and she was not willing to go so far as to sit in her own filth. She was just lucky she had enough movement to use the bucket.

"What do you want?"

"Haven't we been here before?" he asked, kneeling down in front of her. "I don't want anything, honestly. Why don't we play a game, though?"

Sachi kept her gaze hard, but arched an eyebrow in question.

"What sort of game?" She wasn't sure why she even asked.

"Hn, I'll ask a question and you'll answer truthfully. Then you can ask a question and I'll answer."

"You mean twenty questions," she said and he paused for a second before nodding. She realized he might not know what that was. She still hadn't debunked if she was in another dimension, the far past, or far future. She figured the first and last options were the most likely.

"You could say that, Chi-chan," he said cheerfully, and she grimaced.

"Don't call me that," she snapped.

He just laughed, with his deep voice it sounded rather intimidating and soothing at the same time. She blinked, startled by those thoughts, and wondering where they came from to begin with. She told herself it was a simple observation.

"As a good boy, I'll start us off," Tobi said, his voice twisting back and forth between childish and mature. "What's you favorite color?"

Sachi stared at him in disbelief, but the man just plopped down Indian-style in front of her, tilting his orange-masked face to the side like a curious puppy.

"Ah, come on Chi-chan. It's a simple question," he encouraged.

"Fuck you," she spat. Tobi laughed, amused by her fiery spirit.

He smirked behind his mask as he raised his hand towards her and she flinched back on reflex. Tobi stopped and said, "Don't say something you don't want, _Sachi-chan_. You never know who'll take you literally." He smirked wider at the faint traces of fear that shook through her body and ignited in her bright eyes.

"If it helps you to get into the game, Tobi's favorite color is red. I find it very beautiful, the color of blood, the Uchiha's precious eyes, and..."

He reached out and grabbed a few strands of her long hair, letting the locks run through his fingers and loving how she seemed to stop breathing, but didn't allow herself to show anymore fear. Instead she glared at him as if he were a disease. In her bound and weakened position it didn't do much to make him feel threatened.

"I don't really have a favorite color, but I like yellow and purple." Sachi let out a breath of relief when Tobi withdrew his hand and chuckled. She realized he never had any intention of hurting her, but was enjoying her reaction to the threat.

"See, was that so hard?"

"You're the reason Tōsui village was attacked! What do you want?" Sachi demanded, her eyes narrowed. "You're not just talking to me in your free time for nothing; you want something."

"Why ask what you already know?" Tobi asked with a sigh and a shake of his head. "Honestly, the whole thing was set up from the beginning. I had to get you out of Konoha somehow. You're more useful to me than you think. I just haven't decided if your more useful dead or alive."

She didn't say anything, not knowing what she could say to that. She wasn't afraid of death or torture, she hadn't been for a long time. Tobi stood and headed for the cell door. Obviously, he didn't want to play anymore and she wasn't going to complain.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"What is your game wi**th** **that girl, Tobi**?" a black and white figure asked after forming out of the wall minutes after leaving Sachi to her own devices. "You seemed pretty inte**nt on killing her a few days ago...**"

Tobi looked at Zetsu and frowned under his mask. It was a good question. He had set up for the leak of information to get to the Hokage, all so he'd send ninja to investigate. He'd even suggested that someone with knowledge of seals be sent with them; they were the best source of protection on undercover missions one could get.

The fact Sachi had a summon, which could deliver quick messages to the Hokage, was something he'd banked on the Hokage taking into account. He had been ready to go there himself and influence the Hokage into sending Sachi, when the Sandaime did so on his own accord. Once she was in Water Country he laid in wait, and near the end of their mission he sent his – or more like Yagura's – ninja into Tōsui Village to bring back the girl.

At first the plan was simply to kill her. She was too unpredictable to leave alive. She'd already caused quite a few Uchiha to live through the massacre when only Sasuke was supposed to be alive. She survived him during the massacre, even if he hadn't been trying as hard as he ought of, it said a lot about her skills.

He'd known there would be more chances for him to get rid of the Uzumaki girl, so he hadn't bothered pursuing her further. Then he'd found out she'd joined Konoha and that she had a younger sister – another full blooded Uzumaki.

She was proven even more troublesome when she became the Uzumaki clan head and took in the jinchūriki. The original plan had indeed been to kill her, but after she arrived he began to think of her uses.

Her healing was unparalleled by anyone other than Tsunade. She was easily as skilled as Itachi, if the boy refrained from using his Mangekyō Sharingan. From what he'd witnessed she had the highest affinity for fire he'd ever seen, and at least_ some_ mastery of wind chakra. She used her Adamantine Sealing Chains in ways he'd not even seen Uzumaki Kushina use them. And she was only sixteen, she could become even stronger given time.

Furthermore, any child she birthed would also have the potential of being powerful. He wasn't interested in her solely for her ability to have children, though. He was more interested in her power, the power to heal and control, to bind – with her chains she could easily restrain a jinchūriki or the bijū itself. She could even hold one within herself until the proper time to place it within the statue came.

Like most Uzumaki she would be weak to most higher genjutsu, and though she'd shown some aptitude for minor illusions and breaking them, it wouldn't be enough to counter his Mangekyō Sharingan alone. And even if she was able too, no knowledge in seals would save her from his control once he triggered_ it_. If she was weakened first, though... she would fall pray to his control much easier.

If Sachi saw him in another light other than an enemy, then the chances of her fighting his control lessened even more. If something should happen to Yagura, she would make a wonderful container for the Sanbi if it reformed before he was ready to seal it. If nothing else, she would be the ideal person to recapture it because of her abilities.

He smirked. "My plans have changed for now. Uzumaki Sachi is much more valuable to me alive than she is dead."

Zetsu frowned. He wasn't sure if the boy was making the right choices or not. Uzumaki were a tricky breed, and the girl had a hidden power he didn't like. It was powerful, almost dark, but far from evil. Despite his misgivings, Zetsu nodded. Hopefully, this wouldn't blow up in Obito's face.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Night Seven:**

After the Konoha team had arrived at the Rebellions HQ the plans had begun. A large map was laid out and the teams were created. The shinobi would be split into two factions, they didn't have enough shinobi to split them anymore than that. All together, not counting children too young to fight, they had a force of ninety ninja between the ages of twelve and fifty. Ranging from chūnin to hunter-nin trained.

They only had an estimate of Yagura's forces, but since the majority of Kiri-nin stayed in Kiri they were at least facing off against an army of one hundred and fifty – more or less, probably more. During Aoba's run to Konoha, Mei had sent out some of her best Hunter-nin to find Zabuza and his rumored apprentice. They'd given up hope he would be found, but that night after the Konoha shinobi arrived the Hunter-nin had returned with Zabuza and his apprentice, a young boy named Haku. He was the only known Yuki clan member left.

The whole time Honoka stood at the side, not a very high up ninja despite being taught a few things by Mei herself. She had been born in the Land of Fire fourteen years ago. Her mother, Uzumaki Saki, formerly of the Fukui clan of Kumogakure was a missing-nin.

She left Kumo when the Sandaime Raikage demanded she take lovers and have children to continue her dwindling clan and restore the bloodline – which only Saki had at the time. The Shōton, or Crystal Release, a kekkei genkai which combined earth and lightning release chakra natures.

Her father, Uzumaki Shinobu, was the oldest son of a couple who managed to survive the destruction of Uzushio. They were an older couple, so by the time Shinobu was born his parents were quite a bit over middle aged, even if they didn't look it thanks to Uzumaki longevity.

Honoka wasn't sure what happened to her grandparents, but she didn't recall ever meeting them. Her father, on the other hand, had an unknown illness, something which he'd fought since childhood. He eventually succumbed to the disease. And then her mother died fighting Kumo's hunter-nin. She was young, too young to fight with her mother. She was instead ordered to run and she knew to listen.

If Kumo had known who she was, she certainly wouldn't be here today. They would've taken her back to the village, and she might've faced the threat her mother had just to reintroduce the Shōton to Kumogakure. Honoka was by herself for a long time, barely scrapping by on her own. Eventually, her luck ran dry and she was cornered by unknown shinobi – she still didn't recognize their symbol or which village they were apart of.

It was during this time she met Sachi, a relative – though how closely related there was no sure way of knowing. Honoka did know she was not from the Royal family of the Uzumaki clan, so it had to be pretty distant, since Sachi and her sister were of Royal Uzumaki blood.

Honoka had felt a pit of dread in her stomach since the Konoha-nin arrived. How many Sachi's could there be out there? She should have asked if it was the same Sachi she was thinking of, but truth be told, she wanted to be wrong.

She hadn't known Uzumaki Sachi long. Sometimes she wondered if she should've taken the offer and stayed with the two sisters. She had thought about it, but she didn't want to impose on them. At the time she was more of a free spirit and young.

Although she wasn't as cheerful as before her mother's death, Honoka still knew how to laugh back then and even now. It came down to the fact she didn't wanted to go at another's pace. She was only eleven then, so after a while of tagging along she'd left a note one morning and left.

Honoka had been found by Mei and some of her ninja some time later, almost a year ago now. She hadn't quite understood how badly the war in the Land of Water was at the time, so she'd gone to a port-side village to get a boat to Uzu no Kuni – there were many ports in Water Country. There were fewer in the Land of Fire, but looking back she should have chosen one of them. It would've been safer.

Ninja from Kiri attacked looking for refugee bloodline holders, and in order to protect herself she'd used her bloodline like an idiot. If the rebellion hadn't arrived she wouldn't have gotten away, though she would have tried her damnedest.

"You're out rather late, Miss."

Honoka held in a gasp, her hand going to a kunai tucked into the obi of her short battle kimono (a combination of lavender, pale orange and yellows). Standing there in the edge of the shadows was one of the Konoha ANBU. He didn't look all that old, but than again he did have a mask on. His hair was pretty much all she could see, which was brown and his voice was youthful. He was probably a few years older than her, late teens or early twenties.

"Oh, I was just taking a walk," she stated.

Tenzō nodded. "You should head back to your room soon. We leave early for Kirigakure in the morning."

Honoka knew the journey would he rough. They wanted to get to the gates of Kiri before nightfall. It would take at least thirteen hours to get to Kiri from the base, and that was at a steady run the entire way. Otherwise, it took at least two days. She'd never been to Kiri before, but she'd studied the maps. She probably knew shortcuts half the natives didn't by this point.

"I just couldn't sleep." She looked down at the stone floor and sighed. Tucking a bit of her hair behind her ear nervously she asked, "Look, about the mission. Who exactly are we going for? I heard some speak about her, but I'd like to know some more about her."

Tenzō was already pretty still, but he went even stiller at her question. He'd had his suspicions since he'd seen Honoka. None had mentioned her last name, and he got the impression no one knew it, but her hair was so similar to Sachi and Karin that he thought there was a high chance she was an Uzumaki, even if only part. He hadn't come out and asked though, there was really no point in it.

"She is... an interesting person and a friend. Her name's Uzumaki Sachi, she joined Konoha a few months ago. I don't know her as well as some of the others, mostly Shisui, though. He'd probably be the one who could tell you the most," he admitted.

Honoka's breath caught when he said her full name and her eyes widened slowly.

"Sachi," she muttered, a look of what could only be described as despair entering her dark eyes.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Sachi spent the better part of the last three days either working on getting out of the seals and chains, or conversing with Tobi – who was the only one to enter her cell or the area after the first time she woke up.

In the last few days she'd gotten to spend so much time with her kidnapper that she was beginning to worry she was sympathizing with him, and she didn't even know much about him to sympathize with. She would sometimes even find herself enjoying his company. She was even starting to feel less threatened by him; she was letting her guard down, and she knew in the back of her mind that was a bad idea.

It was what he wanted – she had little doubt of that.

Sachi was currently working on fumes. She was fed once or twice a day, usually soups or broths, and sometimes she was given bread. She was given water in small amounts, perhaps three times a day, and the only person she ever saw was Tobi. _Stockholm Syndrome,_ she thought, and wondered if that was what Tobi was banking on.

It would be just her bad luck to be developing something like it. It was going to take more than a few days for her to stop wanting to escape, though. It wasn't until late into the afternoon of day eight, when the sun had fallen, that she finally got the last of the seals off.

Well, maybe not _off _– the ink was still there, but she'd made it so it read something completely different. Instead of stopping her chakra from flowing, it would encourage her chakra to flow, and the array that electrocuted her if she tried to mold chakra was completely gone now.

She wasn't sure if Tobi didn't notice the changes to the seals, wasn't knowledgeable in seals, or was just counting on her escaping. He hadn't acted as if he'd noticed. Getting out of the chains was a little more tricky, but with well aimed wind chakra she was able to cut the chains with little resistance and sound. She probably could've melted them with fire chakra, but that could harm her as well and the less injured she was the better her chances of escape were.

Her next dilemma was standing. Sachi's muscles must have started to atrophy, having stayed in the same position for over a week, so when she stood she fell flat on her face. It took a few minutes to make it to her feet, get out of the cell, and make her way towards the door leading out of wherever she was. Before she left she planted some seals, which she'd used chakra to implant, on the stone walls. When she activated them there would be a big boom worthy of an Uzumaki.

When she opened the door, which was surprisingly unlocked, she was faced with the startled reaction of the shinobi who guarded the door. She'd thought of this, so when he turned to look at her with surprise she was ready.

"Wha – how did you..."

His first mistake was trying to speak before acting. Her hand, coated in her unique chakra, slammed into his chest. The chakra scalpel cut deeply into the guard's heart. He fell to the floor with a thump, and she thanked her mother mentally for insisting she learn some medical-ninjutsu. The guard was still alive for now, but would soon drown in his own blood.

She stepped over him, whispering a soft sorry as she made her way out of the underground encampment. She was soon able to do more than sluggishly jog, most likely her Uzumaki blood kicking in to help her out. She got to the top of the stairs and opened a steel hatch, which opened up into what she assumed to be the basement of the Mizukage tower. She pulled herself through only to be startled when she heard explosions going off, shaking the ground and building around her.

She stood up with a small smile on her face, which grew when she felt Shisui's chakra signature along with a few familiar others. They'd actually come for her.

"I had expected this, but maybe not so soon."

Sachi's eyes widened and she spun around...

**.**

**.**

**.**

The rebellion left their camp before dawn, just as the sun was peaking over the horizon. Other than minor rest stops they had run for the last fourteen and half hours. If it weren't for the soldier pills, they'd have been unable to fight to their full capabilities.

While some ninja had the endurance to go into battle after such a long journey without the added aide of soldier pills, younger more inexperienced ninja didn't always have this. Once they arrived the pills were passed out, to be taken only as needed.

The rebellion had been split into two factions. One was down below laying in wait, while Mei, Shisui, Honoka and a few others were on cliffs overlooking Kirigakure. Close enough to rest and plan, but not too close to the village that the ninja possibly standing guard would notice them right away.

"What are we looking at, Ao?" Mei asked the man gazing down at the village, the eye under his eye-patch seeing everything. The Konoha shinobi were aware of what was under it, though they had neither brought it up or asked to see it. With the current situation no one cared that the man had a hidden Byakugan.

"There don't seem to be many shinobi on watch. It's possible this is when they change shifts from day guards to night guards," Ao said, unsure as it had been years since he'd been a Kiri shinobi. Things could have easily changed. "Our best bet is a surprise assault, I believe. We strike hard from above, and then have the ground forces move in. Either way they out number us."

Mei nodded and turned to Shikaku.

"What do you think?" she asked.

Shikaku nodded. "It's probably our best plan. They seem to not have noticed us yet, and seeing as security is lax they must believe we will not come for her. Probably in fear of spreading the civil war outside Water Country."

"Honoka, send the order to watch for the signal to begin the invasion," Shisui said, stepping forward. The younger Uzumaki girl nodded, and touched the headset at her ear connecting her to Tenzō who led the group down below.

"What's the signal?" she asked, before opening the connection.

"It'll be hard to miss," Shisui said, forming a tiger seal. Honoka nodded in understanding. She may not use fire jutsu, but she knew the start of one when she saw it. Opening the connection she relayed the orders to Tenzō who informed his shinobi.

Shisui's eyes flared with a spinning Mangekyō Sharingan, and he flashed through an array of hand seals.

"Katon: Gōenka (Fire Release: Great Flame Flower)," he said, and spat out dozens of large fireballs.

The others were taken by surprise. Not so much at the chosen technique, but how much more powerful it was than usual. The fireballs were larger than most and many more in number. Kakashi smirked under his mask, he supposed it was true; you shouldn't push an Uchiha. Within seconds the fireballs had rained down on Kirigakure and the area just outside it's gates like meteorites.

"Nice," Mei said, nodding at the destruction the attack had caused. Inwardly she winced at the destruction caused to her old home, but villages could be rebuilt.

Ao nodded. "The guards are down," he said, noticing it through the explosions and smoke with his eye.

The shinobi led by Tenzō charged the gates and flooded into the village. Soon after this, the ones on the cliff found their own way down and into the village.

The battle for Kirigakure had begun.

**.**

**.**

**.**

The village of Kirigakure was soon a battlefield. Blood ran along the ground as shinobi fell on both sides. None had the time to recognize just whose shinobi were taken down, and even still, some of the blood was not from the dead but the wounded.

Tenzō's Mokuton cleared ways, and smashed ninja into buildings along the way. The Kiri-nin under Mei's order, temporarily listening to Tenzō as their commander, fought just as fiercely. This was the final battle between them and Yagura, they could all feel it.

Rana and Mana were twins who had joined the rebellion because of their own morals. They didn't have a bloodline, but they were friends with someone who did. Their teammate had been killed in the beginning of the war for his bloodline. They took pleasure in being able to pay back the ninja who followed Yagura with brutal force. They charged headlong, cutting down ninja with their short swords, and having each others back.

They'd worked well together since birth, and their natural elemental affinities showed this. Mana ran through one-handed seals and shot water from her mouth, coating the ground with a shallow puddle under the ninja surrounding them. Rana took a running leap into the air, already finished with her own hand seals, and as she fell to the ground on one knee in front of her sister her hand sparked with electrical current.

"Hōryū Raika no Jutsu (Discharge Lightning Calamity Technique)," they said together. The ninja who didn't react fast enough were caught in the explosive jutsu, and were either killed instantly or injured severely; either way they wouldn't be getting back up.

"I see you've both come a long way, Rana and Mana." The twins turned to spot their former genin instructor. They hadn't seen him as such since he single-handedly killed Kageki, his other student and their friend.

"Yuu," Mana spat like the name was venom itself.

Rana gripped her wakizashi tightly, her pale blue eyes glaring holes into the shinobi standing with a few others. He'd obviously stopped them from charging ahead to attack them, and Mana being a sensor knew there were ninja fighting others around them. Mana sighed, and twirled her own wakizashi in her hand before stabbing it backwards into a Kiri-nin trying to attack from behind. She'd spoken – figuratively – too soon.

"You've both changed. You look good," he said with a smile like a snake.

They fell into a stance known only to their clan – which had a large amount of twin births – their swords crossed over the others.

"Shut up and fight us," Rana said in no mood for idle chit-chat, and her long white hair shadowing her face.

Mana nodded, her silver hair bobbing in the high ponytail she wore.

"Today we avenge Kageki. You wont be walking away from this fight alive, Yuu."

**.**

**.**

**.**

Zabuza laughed as his zanbatō slashed through three ninja at once, the mist from Kirigakure's signature move; the Hiding in Mist techinque, causing some of the newer shinobi to pause, and the others to fight to survive. He was well known and more than a few had hesitated upon seeing him again. At his back was his young apprentice. Haku's ice release jutsu and growing skill with senbon making it even harder for Yagura's men.

"Zabuza-sama," Haku said, appearing by his side from one of his ice mirrors. "Another group are headed this way."

For a ten year old he was a strong ninja, already of high-genin level, all thanks to the rather treacherous training Zabuza had put Haku through since he'd found the last Yuki. Haku was young still, and if it weren't for Zabuza's insistence, Haku would've stayed back at base with the others ten and under. Haku was lucky not to have encountered anyone above chūnin level yet. Though he stuck close to Zabuza as commanded, so that could be why.

Zabuza turned his attention in the direction of the approaching ninja and snorted.

"Looks like Nobuyuki and his lot." Surprising enough Yuu wasn't with him. "Fall back Haku. This is out of your league," Zabuza said. Haku hesitated before nodding, disappearing through one of _his_ ice mirrors. Haku would return to help the others with their fights.

"I can't believe you had the nerve to come back, Zabuza," Nobuyuki said, coming to a stop in front of him. The mist obscured a lot, but they could still make out the other in the mist.

"Lets skip the banter Nobuyuki, and just get to the fight."

He smirked and Zabuza charged into the group of ninja, his sword raised to kill.

**.**

**.**

**.**

While Mana, Rana, and Zabuza had their own battles, others fought around them. Honoka fought closely with some of the Konoha ninja and Kiri-nin. The young redhead may be a budding fūinjutsu specialist and scientist, but she was not unable to fight. It was why she had stayed with the rebellion, because they'd promised her training. She'd learned a lot from them, mainly in taijutsu.

It showed as she was with Tenzō's group, manipulating her chakra into seals which she used in battle. What appeared to just be a devastating open palm strike to one ninja's chest, detonated into an explosive tag the moment they channeled chakra, taking out two or three of the closest ninja in the blast. She kicked another in the head and then swiped her open palm over the same ninja's throat, cutting off the mans access to ninjutsu by closing his wind pipe off with a seal.

Tenzō was impressed; he'd only heard of a few being skilled enough to use fūinjutsu in battle. Uzumaki Mito was renowned for it, and Uzumaki Kushina was skilled in it, but was more known for kenjutsu and her chakra chains. The only other person he'd seen able to pull it off was Uzumaki Sachi.

Sachi had actually taught Honoka quite a few of the moves she knew (during the short three weeks she'd been with the Uzumaki sisters). Tenzō's attention was pulled back to his battle, which considering how out numbered they were was going well. If not for Shisui's preemptive strike before they rushed Kirigakure, it may have gone differently.

It was already clear the rebellion was a big factor that allowed for the Konoha-nin to make it this far. If they'd had more shinobi to spare they could've done this alone, but Konoha could not afford for the casualties of war so soon after a good chunk of their shinobi force was massacred.

He slammed his elbow into the chin of a Kiri-nin, and in quick succession thrust his tantō into the ninja's heart before withdrawing, and beheading one coming up behind him. Tenzō jumped back, away from a water ninjutsu which crashed onto the ground, eroding the earth, and his hands flew through seals.

"Mokuton: Daijurin no Jutsu (Wood Release: Great Forest Technique)." Tenzō's arm turned to wood and shot out, breaking into branches and becoming spear-like at the end. Those who didn't avoid the branches were speared through the chest or stomach, and dead within seconds of being flung off the wooden branches.

As his feet hit the ground, he was already speaking another jutsu. "Doton: Doryūsō (Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears)." Spears condensed from the mud the prior water jutsu had created, and took out the rest of the group in front of him.

Close by, Honoka took on more unknown Kiri-nin, and thanks to her stamina – which was more than common among the Uzumaki clan – she hardly realized how long had passed since the invasion began. Her knee collided with a ninja's groin, sending him to the ground on his knees, and she grabbed his head in her hands before twisting – breaking his neck.

She spun around, ducking under a sword, and sending her shoulder into the ninja's chest, thanking her short stature for the ability to get under his defense. At the same time she thrust a kunai into the ninja's chest, and jumped backward to avoid an earth jutsu. Unfortunately, for every successful hit or kill, there was someone who got past her defense.

The earth clipped her side and she groaned at the newly opened cuts and bruises. She only spared a moment to make sure her arm wasn't broken, but it cost her. Honoka yelped when a water jutsu slammed into her, and as she stood with a grimace of pain she was forced to doge multiple kunai thrown at her.

She was quick on her feet, but she wasn't the fasted ninja out there, so a few sliced into skin as they flew past her; cutting into her clothes and biting into her legs, arms, and sides. One lodged itself into her shoulder, and she groaned again when a fist flew into her face and then gut, sending her tumbling across the ground closer to Tenzō's position.

Things had turned bad for her quickly.

"You alright?" Tenzō asked, his mask hiding any sort of concern he might have shown on his face.

Honoka got to her feet, her eyes narrowed. "I'm fine, I just got too arrogant there," she said. "But they won't be alright in a minute."

Tenzō killed another ninja who came at him from the front, and took a hit from behind, before recovering and successfully fending the sword wielding kunoichi off. When he had room to breath without being cut down, he pulled the kunai out of his back, and noticed Honoka gathering chakra into her hands before slamming them onto the ground.

A seal array appeared, and a chain link, like a single Kongō Fūsa (Adamantine Sealing Chains), shot out towards every enemy ninja within fifty feet. A bigger array appeared under them, and Tenzō called for their shinobi to fall back away from the array.

A few of the smarter Kirigakure shinobi noticed what he was warning about, and moved just in time to avoid the affects of the seal. Tenzō had expected the seal to be one giant explosive tag, but instead the ninja slowed down, nearly freezing in place.

Honoka smirked, thanking Sachi mentally for leaving her with one of her most accomplished creations. The seal would target a group and cause time to slow down in the area of the seal. Sachi had created it with the Immobulous spell in mind. The redhead's hand flew through hand seals, and Tenzō was taken by surprise at the words out of Honoka's mouth.

"Shōton: Suishōryū Daibakuha (Crystal Release: Crystal Dragon Great Explosion)."

A great dragon made of purple crystal wound around Honoka before shooting towards the immobilized shinobi. It circled around them like a boa constrictor, and then with one last hand seal it exploded into crystal shards. The shards acted oddly, instead of just spreading out in all directions like one expected, they homed in on the shinobi inside the seal array. Like the shards were attuned to only their chakra and where they were.

There was only a few enemy shinobi in the area after the smoke cleared, those who had left the seal before it had activated completely where still standing, but injured. They seemed shaken by what they'd seen, and Honoka groaned at the expense of chakra that one technique took.

The seal itself took a lot of chakra, and then the jutsu she'd used was her most powerful ninjutsu. She may be an Uzumaki, but she was only half Uzumaki, and even an Uzumaki had their limits. It didn't help she hadn't completely mastered that combination technique yet.

"Good job," Tenzō said, holding out a hand to help her up. "You alright to continue forward?"

Honoka grinned shortly, and pulled out the soldier pill she'd not needed until now. "You bet."

**.**

**.**

**.**

While Shikaku handled an area not far away with the Yamanaka and Akimichi clan heads, Shisui had cut a swath through the shinobi forces of Kirigakure. If someone had seen him they'd swear the Yellow Flash of Konoha had returned in a black flash of death to anyone who got in his way.

His target was the Mizukage Tower, which was just about centered in the village. Mei had told him it was the most likely place for Yagura to be holding Sachi, since their high security cells were directly underneath it. As he moves he cuts down the ninja who try to take him out.

But with one glance of his Sharingan many stopped short only to begin screaming as if in pain, others turn against one another; saving him from dirtying his blade and wasting time. He wasn't known for his powerful genjutsu and shunshin for nothing.

With the Mizukage tower a few feet in front of him, Shisui was forced to slow to a stop by a group of shinobi waiting for him. Together they unleash a wave of water, hoping to disable him. Tossing his sword into the air, he flashes through quick hand seals, gathers his breath, and releases.

"Katon: Gōka Mekkyaku (Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation)."

The jutsu was rather feared by those who remembered its origins. A technique made infamous by Uchiha Madara, his great-grandfather. Not many were old enough to have encountered it, and few knew how to do the jutsu – which was probably why more Uchiha hadn't gone around spamming it in the past.

It was passed down through his family though, his father left it for him to learn after his death. Shisui didn't use it often, preferring more subtle means of making a name for himself; such as his shunshin and genjutsu, which was what he was known for in most parts of the world.

The wide spreed fire jutsu – one of his most powerful Katon jutsu – collided with the water and pushed against it. Steam was the result as the water vaporized, leaving those who hadn't moved to be engulfed in what was left of the fire.

Once he'd finished breathing fire, Shisui body flickered forward in quick succession, giving the group of remaining shinobi no time to react before they were cut down, some by nothing more than the afterimages of his technique.

With his eyes darting around warily, Shisui came to a stop and flicked the blood from his tantō. All around him was devastated earth, charred and corpse ridden. He understood a little better now why the Rebellion had failed to stop Yagura in the past. There situation seemed hopeless with how outnumbered they were. He refused to give in, though, and he wasn't leaving without Sachi.

His chance to get to her was now, while the pathway was clear of shinobi. He took a few steps forward, but just outside the entrance he stopped. Sensing a chakra signature just above him, Shisui looked up with his eyes narrowed.

"Ah, so you came after all. I wonder, how much fight do you even have left?" Yagura's mocking voice asked. Clapping slowly and chuckling darkly (in a way Shisui found overly cliché). "Do you even have the chakra left to spare, Shunshin no Shisui?"

The Mizukage stood in front of him now, just ten feet away, and Shisui's grip on his tantō tightened.

"Where is she?" he demanded, his knuckles turning white from gripping the hilt so tightly.

"So that's the great Uchiha Shisui's reason for storming the Bloody Mist." Yagura laughed. "How the mighty have fallen."

Shisui growled low in his throat, his Sharingan spinning as he disappeared like a mirage. He was on Yagura in a second, and sweeping his sword across with the desire to detach the Mizukage's head from his shoulders. He only ended up splashed with water –_ a water clone_, he thought with annoyance. He turned around in time to catch the man's hooked-club with his sword.

Looking into his eyes, Shisui couldn't help but feel as if something was off. Yagura spoke as if he knew what he was doing, and he enjoyed causing the chaos and bloodshed he did, but his eyes... they were different.

Before he could look further into it, Yagura channeled chakra into his club to double his strength, and push past his guard. Shisui body-flickered behind the Kage, only to find the man's club headed for his temple. Ducking down he received a kick to the torso, which shot him across the field and into some rubble from broken down buildings.

"You can't hope to defeat me… Ahhg!" Yagura cried out when a punch forced his head to the side. Another punch forced him to double over. With wide eyes he barely noticed the sound of a blade through air, and replaced himself with a water clone before Shisui could decapitate him. This clone was different than the one before, and Shisui hissed when the water splashed him; acting like acid it began burning through his clothes and skin. It wasn't enough to make him loose focus, however.

They stood across from each other, feet apart, and Yagura wiped blood from his face with a look of surprise.

"You talk too much." Shisui smirked. "Looks like I got first blood."

"It'll be the last thing you ever do, boy!" Yagura growled out, and the fight started again. Punches and kicks flew between then, and both used their weapon of choice to their advantage. Shisui took more than a few hits from the shorter man, but gave as good as he got.

"Sango Renshō (Coral Ripples Rising)." Yagura slammed the end of his staff onto the ground, and Shisui's eyes widened when he saw the spiked-coral rising from the ground in a line towards him.

Yagura smirked when the coral pierced Shisui's body, but instead of gagging on his own blood and dying slowly, like he'd expected, Shisui simply faded away. Looking around for the teleporter, Yagura's head snapped up at the sound of flapping wings. Heading straight for him was a flock of murderous crows. Skidding back to gain distance, Yagura batted those he could away with his staff.

However, he was unable to deflect them all, and ended up bleeding from being pecked at by the birds that broke his defense. Snarling in anger, the Mizukage released a bit of the Three tails chakra, which caused the crows to disperse. He was too late to stop Shisui's next move, though, and felt his breath leave him when he was kicked across the rough ground.

He was standing back up when he heard it.

"Raiton: Gian (Lightning Release: False Darkness)!" Shisui spat out a spear of bright lightning, his tantō at his side and the lightning chakra swirling around it as well. Using his afterimage clones, Shisui sped around the Mizukage, leaving behind dozens of afterimages.

The lightning was too fast. Yagura had no chance at dodging it, and although he had a technique that might turn the tables, he had no time to enact it. He barely noticed Shisui running circles around him moments before the lightning struck him full on.

His screams were those of agony, even for a seasoned ninja being struck with lightning wasn't something he could ignore.

Shisui's shoulders sagged momentarily, but his Sharingan told him what he feared – Yagura had survived, despite having been fried by lightning; lightning which had pierced the right side of his chest, inches from his beating heart. He'd had just enough time to make the attack less lethal, and he was breathing heavily, nearly on his knees.

"H-how… dare you. How dare you make a mockery of me!" Yagura snarled, the Sanbi's chakra swirling around him.

_'Shit,' _Shisui thought. He'd used a lot of his chakra already, and he could feel the exhaustion starting to set in. he knew this could happen, throwing around high-level ninjutsu like the Great Fire Annihilation and False Darkness wasn't without sacrifice. His Shunshin as well, it might be a low chakra consuming technique but with the way he used it, it might as well have been a high-chakra consuming technique.

But he couldn't give up now. His comrades were fighting a battle that they could very well lose around him. It had been decided he'd focus on finding Sachi, and he wasn't about to fail his mission. Reaching into his back pouch he pulled out a capsule, a chakra pill, and swallowed it dry. Instantly he felt his reserves rise, but it would only last so long. No one said fighting a jinchūriki, who happened to be a Kage, was going to be easy.

Raising his tantō in front of him, Shisui darted forward so fast his foot bit into the ground, leaving a small crater in his wake.

He would not lose!

.

.

.

Tobi watched from a high spot atop the Mizukage tower, his arms crossed and an amused gleam in his eyes. If one was to look deeper, they'd see a hint of pride within them as well. Tobi, otherwise known as Uchiha Madara (or in a distant past – his real name, Uchiha Obito), was rather impressed with Shisui.

He could see now why the boy was said to be the most talented ninja within the clan in generations, second only to Itachi. But that was really debatable. Tobi wasn't sure who would win should Shisui and Itachi face off in an honest to god battle to the death. Both were prodigies, both possessed the drive and power to back them. He supposed it came down to who wanted it bad enough.

The same could be said for the battle going on now. The tides were stacked against his foolish little brother. Yagura was a good little puppet, and a powerful one at that. He was a seasoned ninja, having fought in wars Shisui was too young to fully participate in. He had the power of a bijū at his disposal, but at the same time Yagura was at a disadvantage because of the power behind Shisui's dōjutsu.

There was always the chance Shisui would come out victorious. In fact, Tobi hoped he did. He may have broken any bonds he could've had with his little brother the moment Rin died, the moment he'd set loose the Kyūbi on Konoha and helped Itachi massacre their clan, but he was still blood. He couldn't help the pride he felt for his brother.

Still, he had no intention of going easy on the boy. Should he survive Yagura, he had a special surprise in store for Shunshin no Shisui.

It would be hell.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Shisui stumbled back, his head ringing from being bludgeoned with the end of Yagura's staff. He realized his mistake too late; he gasped for air when the hooked end came around his neck and Yagura spun around in circles.

Shisui was flung about in a circle, causing his head and blood to pound, before Yagura let gravity have him. He was flung high into the air, and gasped loudly when he felt a chakra powered foot meet his back, nearly snapping the spine as he was forced back down onto the earth.

Yagura landed on the ground, and walked over to the cracked earth where Shisui struggled to stand. The Mizukage chuckled, his staff held loosely at his side. Shisui stood half on his knees as he shook the blood from his face and ears. Spitting a glob onto the ground – luckily his spine wasn't cracked in the collision between his body and the earth.

"You stand no chance. You and your comrades will die today..."

Shisui glared at Yagura, his eyes spinning into his Mangekyō Sharingan. Yagura froze momentarily, and Shisui tilted his head to the side. To a regular shinobi it would be difficult to spot, but Shisui was an Uchiha, someone who regularly made a point of looking someone in the eye, and he could tell the difference between honest emotion and emotion hidden beneath the surface.

And Yagura, though acting perfectly in control of himself the entire battle, had a glazed quality to his eyes that Shisui recognized almost instantly – a genjutsu, a strong one if it could cause a Kage level shinobi to act like this. And he only knew one type of genjutsu that could accomplish this effect; a Sharingan based genjutsu.

The way the Mizukage had frozen at his Mangekyō… well, Shisui had a terrible taste in his mouth as a theory came to mind. Other than Itachi, he was the only known Mangekyō user alive, but there was one other possibility. The masked man Sachi fought the night of the massacre was thought to be an Uchiha, but other than Sachi's word, there was no solid proof. But maybe now there was.

Shisui tried negating the genjutsu, but whatever genjutsu this was, it was the strongest he'd encountered, other than his own. Unfortunately, his prodding at the control held over Yagura seemed to shake the man from his daze. But the genjutsu hadn't broken. Acting quickly, Shisui body-flickered behind Yagura and swung his blade at his neck. He was stopped by the man's staff, which pushed back against his blade.

Yagura glared into his eyes, a brave (or stupid) thing to do when faced with the Sharingan. With a grunt Yagura pushed once more, adding chakra to his staff, and watched with glee when Shisui's tantō broke in two. Shisui's eyes widened, but he was nearly ten feet away from the Mizukage within seconds, throwing his now useless sword to the side.

"Who are you?"

"What are you talking about, boy?" asked Yagura, raising an eyebrow and leveling his staff towards him. "I am Yagura, Mizukage of Kirigakure. Jinchūriki of the Sanbi."

"Maybe in body, but in mind… you're little more than a doll. Haven't you noticed, hasn't your bijū noticed?" Shisui asked.

He needed to know. Most jinchūriki weren't quite as susceptible to genjutsu as others, usually because their bijū could warn their container or negate the effects. Yet he knew more powerful genjutsu could overpower even bijū. His own ancestor had controlled the Kyūbi, the strongest of the nine tailed-beast. If this genjutsu was powerful enough to render the Sanbi docile, it must be on a level similar to his Kotoamatsukami, and the caster was someone to be weary of. Even to him, known for his prowess in genjutsu.

He only had one genjutsu that might counter the effects of whatever was controlling Yagura. However, he wasn't even sure if he could use it right now. It usually took more than a few months to use it after using it once. And it hadn't been long since Danzō's execution. He'd never tried to use the Kotoamatsukami to counter another genjutsu either, only to take control of someone. Although, he was almost positive it would work. The thing about Kotoamatsukami was that it could take up to a decade to be useable again (depending on the user). He'd already used it once – he didn't know if he could do it again.

_'Plan B then,' _he thought. He pulled out a handful of kunai, tossed them into the air and inhaled. "Fūton: Reppūshō (Wind Release: Gale Palm)." He clapped his hands together, letting loose a powerful wind which caught the kunai and made them even more deadly.

The wind and kunai hurtled towards Yagura, who scoffed and batted the kunai away, growling when he noticed the gouges it placed in his staff. He was pushed back by the fierceness of the wind, but kept on his feet. Reaching behind him, Shisui pulled out a scroll and unsealed another blade, a longer-bladed wakizashi, which had belonged to his mother.

It was made in the land of Iron and was much sturdier metal than his old tantō. He didn't usually use it because it was of sentimental value, but he'd rather use it now than be left with only kunai and shuriken as weapons against Yagura's staff. If he could just get rid of it, the fight might land back in his favor.

They charged each other with the intention of ending the others life. Their respective weapons clashed together, and they would sometimes shift into a more taijutsu heavy battle, their weapons either at their sides or used as defense against the others punches and kicks.

Shisui got a heavy punch on Yagura's face, only to have the smaller man heave a powerful kick into his mid-section. Doubling over, Shisui resorted to body-flickering around Yagura, and summoning a murder of crows to attack the man.

Yagura snarled through his teeth. "This old trick again," he said. "No matter."

Shisui was unprepared for Yagura to be upon him in a matter of seconds, having incinerated his crows with a large dose of bijū chakra flung around him like a cloak. Yagura's staff stabbed into the Uchiha's gut and then his back. Once behind Shisui, he hooked him with his staff and tossed him into the air.

Making a few hand seals, Yagura held his hand to his mouth and said, "Suiton: Suichū Hōgeki (Water Release: Water Pillar Barrage)." Pillars of water raced up to impact Shisui, but he'd righted himself while in the air and his Mangekyō appeared to glow murderously.

"Amaterasu," he said, and black fire lit up in-front of him. The water was instantly rendered little more than steam (barely even that). Yagura's eyes widened before narrowing, narrowly avoiding the black flames which had continued to travel for him. He watched the flames burn the ground, refusing to be extinguished by anyone but their caster.

"I see," Yagura said, a Mangekyō Sharingan design flashing in his eyes, which didn't go unnoticed to Shisui.

_'So it is a Sharingan genjutsu, which means I have to end this. Now!' _Shisui thought and he said, "Amaterasu: Entenka." The ribs of his Susanoo covered him, and was then lit by the black flames of Amaterasu. Holding his wakizashi out in front of him he continued, "Enton: Kagutsuchi (Blaze Release: Added Tool Earth Lord)."

The flames spread around him and his sword. While he cast the Amaterasu with his left eye, he controlled it with his right. Yagura frowned, visibly shaken by the show in power, but unwilling to give in. Shisui disappeared from where he stood, leaving behind smoldering ground as he rushed Yagura. The jinchūriki knew if those flames touched him, not even Isobu would be healing him quick enough; maybe not at all. He'd only heard tell of the Uchiha's black flames, and the green and black encircling Shisui certainly outdid any rumor he'd heard.

Holding his staff in front of him, Yagura made a circle motion in the air, while putting distance between him and the teleporter. "Suiton: Mizukagami no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Mirror Technique)!"

A mirror appeared and Shisui nearly stopped his approach when a mirror-image of himself appeared out of it. He continued his run and with his free hand he went through hand seals. He knew if he didn't overpower this reflection then he was done for. The last thing he wanted to do was be hit by his own technique.

He willed the flames of Amaterasu to thicken around and in front of him, the bones of his Susanoo becoming fuller as he muttered his last words, "Raiton: Jibashi (Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder)" Lightning streamed around him in wide arcs, attaching to his form as he and his reflection collided.

There was a cracking sound, and the sounds of lightning screeching. Yagura gasped as his mirror was cracked and shattered into fine dust. His jutsu standing no chance against Shisui's lightning enhanced technique. He screamed when Shisui struck him, having no time to avoid it Yagura was left completely vulnerable. For sixty seconds after-images of Shisui danced circles around the Mizukage, his blade striking, his flames eating at the jinchūriki who couldn't heal quick enough to match his speed and power.

Shisui landed one more blow with his wakizashi before he landed a few feet away with his back to the Mizukage. Both of his eyes bled fiercely, and he struggled to stand. The lightning fell away, leaving only his flaming bones, until he was forced to drop both his Amaterasu and incomplete Susanoo. Yagura was screaming silently, his left arm (and staff) completely eaten away by Amaterasu and his body a geyser of blood. The Mizukage fell to his knees, his fingers digging into the ground.

"I-I won't be de-fe..." Yagura struggled to speak and stand.

His arm was gone and the deep cuts on his body felt as if they were infected with those black flames. They refused to close, even the Sanbi had trouble healing his wounds. His arm was a complete lost cause, and if he'd not detached it at the shoulder it would've continued to burn away at his body. He hadn't been left unburned either, his body was covered in burns, but his arm was the only thing which had caught completely on fire.

Yagura didn't finish, he screamed and released one tail of Isobu's power, causing Shisui to groan. Wiping his eyes, Shisui flickered in-front of Yagura with half of his Susanoo activated and his eyes spinning. The Mizukage's eyes widened in realization, and knowing that he couldn't evade the Uchiha, Yagura was caught by his power and Isobu was lolled into sleep.

Without his bijū, Yagura was left near defenseless. He couldn't avoid the powerful punch the arm of Shisui's Susanoo delivered, and he was punted across the village. Too far for Shisui to even see when he inevitably landed.

Unsure if it was over, but unable to keep to his feet, Shisui fell to his knees panting. His chakra felt burnt out again, worse than before, and his eyes stung like a thousand bee-stings. Blood slowly trickled down his face from his eyes. He closed his eyes and caught his breath while he still could. Despite Yagura being out of commission, he knew this was far from over.

Shisui dug his blade into the ground as he tried to clear his vision and keep his body steady. The ground around him had been torn asunder by him and Yagura, a battle which he doubted was truly over given Yagura's jinchūriki status; it was a known fact that it was notoriously hard to kill a jinchūriki. If the Mizukage got back up he'd have no choice but to use the Kotoamatsukami, and pray that it worked so soon after the last use.

"I must say," a deep voice said from above. "I'm impressed."

Shisui's breath, which came in short burst, halted and he turned towards the top of the Mizukage tower. Standing there nonchalantly was a man dressed in black; a body-concealing black cloak and orange spiral mask. His eyes widened and he pushed the discomfort use of his Mangekyō caused aside; this was the man Sachi had seen, the one who'd aided Itachi in massacring the majority of the Uchiha clan. Shisui wasn't sure how he felt about this mans part in the massacre of his clan, but suddenly Sachi's capture made even more sense. This wasn't just about her blood.

"You," he breathed the words. "You're the one who helped Itachi..."

Tobi tilted his head silently. "Hmm? So you've heard of me?" He chuckled. "I'm not surprised. Sachi doesn't seem the type to keep our… encounter to herself."

Shisui narrowed his eyes at the familiar way he said Sachi's name, as if they were close friends. Suddenly it hit him who the true mastermind behind Yagura really was. "You're controlling Yagura… you're an Uchiha?!" he accused, now back on his feet and on his guard. "Just who the hell are you?!"

"Again, you're correct. But given your prowess in genjutsu it was only a matter of time before you noticed. As for who I am… you may call me Tobi."

His teeth ground together, his irritation and anger rising the longer he listened to Tobi. This man hadn't only killed who-knows-how-many of his clan, but admitted to being the cause of a civil war – the reason behind countless deaths: women, children, and men alike. Shisui held his wakizashi in-front of him and disappeared, leaving an afterimage clone behind. He was upon the masked-man who called himself Tobi before most could've blinked. Any ninja not quick enough to react would have been beheaded, but Shisui got a nasty surprise when he passed through Tobi like a ghost. Spinning around on his heal, Shisui stared at Tobi in shock.

"Huh, what was that?" he muttered, he'd flown right through him! He'd never seen a technique like that before, the only thing remotely similar was when someone would mistake one of his afterimages for him.

Tobi laughed. "I am not without my own unique abilities, boy." He tapped the side of his mask, near his lone eye, and Shisui clinched his fist. So that was his secret, Shisui thought, he was using a technique unique to his Mangekyō Sharingan. Shisui had underestimated this man, but that wouldn't happen again.

Tobi held out a hand and mockingly urged Shisui to attack, and having no choice but to take the challenge, Shisui flickered across the distance between them. If he couldn't trust Tobi to stay solid long enough to land a hit, then he'd simply have to be faster than Tobi. His sword glanced off Tobi's kunai and Shisui exploded into crows, which attempted peck the masked-man to death.

Tobi proved too much for the crows, however, and one by one the crows were destroyed. Falling from the sky, the real Shisui poised his sword to pierce Tobi's body silently. He only got so close before the man looked up and disappeared entirely with only a distortion in the air to show for it. His sword sank into rock and earth instead.

"Shit," Shisui muttered, standing and groaning as his earlier injuries strained with each breath and movement. He was pretty sure a good number of his ribs were broken.

His grip on his blade was wretched away when he was kicked in the back and sent tumbling across the torn ground. He came to a stop about a foot away from Tobi, who'd reappeared behind him from wherever he'd gone. Shisui knew it was tied to his eyes (he didn't know what this technique was, but he'd look into it if he made it home. The Uchiha records had to have mentioned such abilities somewhere).

"Amaterasu," Shisui called as soon as he set eyes on Tobi, and the man simply crossed his arms and waited. He growled out in rage when the flames were sucked into whatever dimension his eye led too. Opening his senses he was gone from his spot just as a distortion opened up above him, and his own technique rained down on the spot he'd been moments before.

His eyes strained against him more, blood trailing down from one, and he felt his reserves plummet even farther. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he was out-classed. Maybe if he wasn't already so worn from his prior battles, but there was no point denying that right now Tobi was toying with him.

_Damn him_, Shisui thought angrily.

Tobi clapped his hands together and laughed darkly. "Splendid. You're a talented shinobi, but you're a hundred years too early to be standing against me today. It was an honorable try, I'll give you that."

"Just tell me, what have you done with Sachi?" Shisui demanded, his blood boiling in his veins. He'd never felt so much hatred for one person before – not even Danzō.

"Hn? I've done nothing… in fact, why don't you see for yourself," Tobi said, looking towards the Mizukage Tower and Shisui felt a shiver down his spine.

"What..." Shisui's tongue dried out and he chocked on his words, his eyes widening upon seeing a familiar slender figure standing on the very top of the tower.

Long red-hair fell to the back of shapely thighs to her knees, but unlike the usual near-straight, asymmetrical locks he was used to, her hair was messy, tangled in spots and spiking out almost uncontrollably. He didn't know if the spikiness was something caused by lack of care or something more natural, but it made her look wild. Almost feral against her too pale skin, which was visibly scuffed with dirt and dust.

Her fist were twisted into her kimono, which was tattered and torn, nearly falling off her shoulders and ripped at the ribcage. Her usual vivacious emerald eyes were lacking most of their spark and glazed over – Tobi wasn't trying to disguise the fact he was controlling her.

"You bastard!" Shisui shouted, glaring the promise of a slow and painful death at Tobi. "Let her go. This fight doesn't have to concern her."

Tobi laughed, appearing behind the unresponsive Uzumaki. He placed a hand on her bare shoulder, using his other gloved hand to caress her cheek. "Now why should I care about that? You said you wanted to see what I've done with her, well, here she is. She's very beautiful, I'd like to find out if she's just as beautiful as she kills you… or you kill her. I'm not picky."

Shisui felt his eyes burning and even with his depleted vision he could clearly see Tobi behind Sachi, touching her almost like a lover would. He wanted to rip her away from him, to keep her safe from Tobi's influence. He saw red and he vowed that for whatever pain Sachi went through, he'd repay upon Tobi a thousand times before he died.

Tobi pulled his hand away from Sachi's cheek and squeezed her shoulder tightly. Leaning down he whispered his command into her ear, "Kill him, Chi-chan."

Sachi's eyes sparked with recognition, but not of Shisui, of whatever Tobi had whispered to her, and with a war-cry she leaped from the tower and raced toward Shisui. He grunted when her fist met his crossed arms and he pushed back, forcing her to skid across the ground. Her bare-feet bled as sharp bits of earth shredded them, but Sachi paid them no mind (her shoes had been lost sometime between arriving in Kirigakure and now).

Seeing the fight begin, Tobi disappeared from the battle ground.

"Sachi… please! You have to listen to me!" Shisui said between the punches, kicks, and combos Sachi threw at him. He was trying to reach her, trying not to hurt her.

He'd already tried dispelling the genjutsu Tobi had her under, but it was one of the most powerful illusions he'd ever seen. On the same level as whatever Tobi had the Mizukage under. It didn't help that Shisui was running on empty. Sachi never said a word. She was a woman on a mission, listening only to the commands she was given by the one who held her leash. Her face remained nearly perfectly stoic, only changing when Shisui avoided a killing blow or fought back.

Her body was like a hurricane. She danced around him gracefully, throwing punches and open palmed blows, and tried to take him off his feet with low and high kicks. He evaded most, but for every hit which passed him harmlessly, two more hit their mark. He was forced to fight back, abandoning his kenjutsu and weapons for taijutsu. His foot collided with her gut as his forearm blocked an open-palm.

Sachi twisted around and threw her opposite elbow back into his nose. He heard the crack of cartilage and blood which flowed freely as he stumbled back, keeping most of his attention on Sachi who pressed on, giving him little to no time to recover.

"Sachi," He muttered, as he grabbed her right fist and then her left in his when she threw them. They were face to face now. "This isn't right. You're being controlled. You have to break free… I'll help you, but you have to listen to me!"

He pushed some of his remaining chakra into her hands and she groaned, shook her head as if to clear it, but his hopes were squandered when she broke away and flickered behind him. He turned and used his arm to block an open-palm strike, which might have done serious damage to his spine had it hit. Instead he got a shock, literally, when her palm hit his arm. Instead of having just the force of her hit absorbed into his arm, he saw her releasing chakra too late and felt the pain of lightning coursing through his body (and not for the first time that day).

He dropped to a knee and saw the markings of a seal on his right sleeve. It was difficult business making seals with little more than your chakra, it was even more difficult to place said seal on fabric instead of skin, but Sachi excelled in it. In a few years she'd probably be better at seals than Jiraiya of the Sannin. She already had the advantage of being taught fūinjutsu by her parents, two Uzumaki trained by the clan.

He'd forgotten that taijutsu wasn't the main threat with her, it was her mixing fūinjutsu with her taijutsu that made it deadly. Sachi increased the voltage the seal released and Shisui struggled through the paralyzing pain and ripped the sleeve off his shirt. The seal came away with it, and he was gone before Sachi's glowing chains could impale him. They sank into the ground and she tore them out without a care. She stood several feet away from him now, dozens of chains waving around her like angry snakes. But something had changed, Sachi was slower in her movement. Her face was more expressive.

On the inside her state of mind was in chaos. She knew what was happening to her now, she could hear him, and she continued to combat the control Tobi had over her. After days of disabling complex seals from her body, a lack of proper care, Sachi's mental state was already fragile. Still, weak or not, she fought; before this point she'd been in a daze, but now that things were clearer she refused to let Tobi win.

Sachi wouldn't forgive herself if Shisui died because of her.

Shisui moved his nose back into place, barely paying mind to the pain (it was nothing compared to having his eye torn out). Without a word the fight began again, this time as a game of cat and mouse – Sachi's chains flying out and attempting to either stab or grab the flighty Uchiha. One silver-gold chain sliced into his abdomen, but pivoting to the side saved him from being spiked along its length.

With a grunt, Shisui body-flickered circles around her, leaving afterimages to keep her busy, and in this time was able to fish out a chakra pill and pop it into his mouth without much hesitation. It wasn't recommended to take more than one within twenty-four hours of each other, but he had no choice; the last few uses of chakra had wiped him out almost to the point of chakra exhaustion, and his Sharingan couldn't be used without enough chakra. And it was obvious he would need it.

He felt the affects immediately and flickered behind Sachi; mindful of her chains, Shisui attempted to knock her out – hopeful that with her unconscious he could go about breaking Tobi's control on her. Instead he ended up grabbed around the ankle, lifted into the air, and slammed into the ground a foot away.

Shisui could feel his chakra being affected by her chains. Growling, he released Amaterasu on the chain, breaking it's hold on him. The flames attempted to run up the length of the chain that remained and back to Sachi, but the redhead disconnected the chains from her body and the flames lit up the ground instead. Shisui jumped to his feet and looked at Sachi sadly.

Not matter how he tried to reach her emotionally, her body continued acting against her will. Sachi recovered from a viscous roundhouse to the face which sent her body flying, but instead of tumbling about she flipped in mid-air and landed on the ground gracefully. She glared slightly, wiping her busted lip and flew through hand-seals.

"You have to fight it, Sachi," Shisui said, holding his ribs with on hand and tightening his hold over his recovered wakizashi. He read her hand-seals before he heard the name of the jutsu.

"Katon: Yūreibi (Fire Release: Ghost Fire)." White-hot flames arced out and headed for him, and he knew he didn't have the time to counter it with a powerful enough water-jutsu. Instead he allowed his Sharingan to shift into the Mangekyō Sharingan. He couldn't afford to hold back any longer.

Sachi watched as her flames engulfed the Uchiha, but what she expected to see was a smoldering corpse or skeleton – she was half-right. Her flames exploded out and around Shisui as his chakra exploded around him in a wave of green. Sachi's eyes followed the formation of ribs and a body and arms, a head. It towered over them, the shade of green just as bright as her eyes.

"Susanoo," Shisui muttered from the center of the perfected Susanoo.

Sachi's eyes hid a battle of wills as she gazed at the creature protecting her prey. Instead of fear, however, she simply released a large amount of her chakra around herself, along with a dozen more chains, half of which curled around the vitals of her body, as well as her hands and arms.

The battle for Sachi's freedom had only just begun.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**AN: So... it's been over a year since I updated this. I'm sorry, but either things got in the way or my inspiration for this story wasn't there. It didn't help I was having a hard time rewriting it to my standards. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, although the longest chapter yet. It might not be as good as the original chapter I lost, but it's a close second. Hopefully it was somewhat worth the wait. The next chapter shouldn't take nearly as long since I've already started writing it. I'm sorry for any blatant errors, it's a long chapter so I may have missed a bit - like always I'll be going over it and fixing any mistake I find. The same can be said for the previous chapters, when I find the time.**


End file.
